Lil Red Riding Hood
by Novaya Model
Summary: It was late. Too late for someone her age to be out. She looked to be about 15 or 16, too young to be out this late. Little girls like her should be tucked away in bed, lest monsters like him find them. Alec/OC inspiring song by Amanda Seyfried
1. Lil Red Riding Hood

_**Inspired by the song 'Lil Red Riding Hood' by Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs, re-done by Amanda Seyfried. I suggest going to YouTube and having the song play in the background while reading. **_

_**~I  
~II  
~III  
**_

_"Hey there Lil Red Riding Hood, you sure are looking good. You're everything, a big bad wolf could want."  
_

_**~IV**  
**~V**  
**~VI**  
_

It was late. Too late for someone her age to be out. She looked to be about 15 or 16, too young to be out this late. Little girls like her should be tucked away in bed, lest monsters like him find them.

The moon floated high, casting a bright light throughout the wooded area that reflected eerily off of the mild haze of fog that dusted the forest floor. Through the fog, he watched. He watched the young lay in the red, hooded capelet glide amongst the foliage. She would rise onto her toes for a split second and spin, before falling back down. Then she would take a long step-toes pointed- and kick onto her extended leg and pirouette once or twice. Afterwards, she would waltz for a few steps, before starting over.

With her dance came a song. He recognized it. It had come out sometime in the 1960s. His sister had been obsessed with it, always singing it. Like the girl before him now.

"What big eyes you have," she sang softly, "the kind of eyes that drive wolves mad. You're everything, a big bad wolf could want."

She started to hum, twirling once more, and he took silent note of the differences between the songs of his sister and his possible prey.

His sister had sung with a lively playfulness of rock n' roll of the 60s. This girl sang with more soul- giving the tune a much more lullaby feel than a sock-hop jig.

The lyrics started again and he could have chuckled- would have chuckled- at the irony of what she sang: A young girl in a bright red jacket walking through a dark forest singing about Little Red. Now all she needed was a wolf.

Maybe that was his role.

This time, he really did chuckle. The others would get a kick out of that.

"Little Red Riding Hood," she sang, spinning, "I don't think little big girls should-"

"Go walking around, these spooky old woods alone." He cut in, stepping out from the dense forest back drop, hands in pockets and smirk on face.

She spun around to see him, her shimmering light-brown ringlets bouncing as she did. Walnut shaped brown eyes looked at him in mild fright.

_What big eyes you have, _he sang to himself mentally.

Suddenly, the fright in her eyes vanished- replaced by amusement- and the little 'o' her plump lips had formed transfigured into a smile.

"Nice," she congratulated, "I see what you did there."

His smirk grew larger.

"And _what-_pray tell- did I do?"

She smiled again and rolled her eyes.

"I like that you know the song." She started conversationally, obviously ignoring his question. He smirked once more. She wasn't getting off that easily.

"My sister is a fan of it." He told her truthfully, "Though I can't say I've heard _your _version before. Now: _what _is it that I did?"

She looked him dead in the eye. "You emphasized the 'spooky' aspect of the woods by lurking in the shadows and sneaking up on me, complementing the lyrical line particularly well."

He smiled, amusement glinting in his eyes. "You're a quick one."

She smiled a reserved smile, breaking eye contact to look up at the full moon.

"What's your name?" He asked after a few moments of silence, still circling her slowly.

"What's your's?" She retorted.

He scrunched his face in indignation. "I asked you first." His inner voice laughed at him, reminding him that there was a reason Aro was concerned with changing him and his sister at such a young age. Maturity is a concept that- even centuries later- he occasionally had a difficult time grasping.

"First's the worst, second's the best." She challenged, still observing the lunar orb.

He stared at her.

Confused by the silence, she glanced back at him and saw her own confusion mirrored by his face.

"You've never heard that?" She asked in disbelief.

He shook his head.

"Seriously?" she asked again, "Elementary school? Or I guess its primary school, here, or something."

He smiled to himself. As if _he _knew anything of the going-ons in modern schooling systems.

She took his silence as an answer in the negatory. "It's a commonly used come-back by little kids. Similar in nature to 'I know you are, but what am I?' and 'So's your face'."

He wasn't paying attention. No, he was too distracted. As he circled her, his eyes admired the view. Her shoulders were broad, her chest…nice, or so he assumed- the capelet skewing his view. Under her jacket, she wore a black tank top the accented her lean waist. She wore a thigh-length plaid skirt, the kind a young lady would wear at private school of some sort, which complemented her voluptuous hips and bum. Black tights covered her legs from the late-autumn night and led to a pair of black shoes. Something flats. Something to do with dance. What was it? Oh, what the hell did it matter? Her shoes were the least of his concerns.

How bad would it be if he played with his food?

"Alec," he spoke, his eyes traveling back up to her face. They took their sweet time, too.

When they finally did get there, they were met with slightly annoyed confusion.

"My name." He informed coolly, "My name is Alec."

"Katherine." She responded, eyes locked on his, clearly aggravated with his blatant… appreciation of her body.

"I'm thirteen," he told her, still circling.

"Ditto."

He smirked and a questioning look over-took his face.

"I was an early bloomer." She enlightened with a sigh. He scoffed, wondering how many times she got shocked responses to her age to the point where she could decipher a complete stranger's opinion with a simple look.

"How many boyfriends have you had?" He questioned. A body like her's surrounded by pubescent barely-teenage boys? His guess was about 20 or so.

This time, it was her turn to scoff.

"None." She answered truthfully, with a smile that could have been dripping with venom. "I don't bother wasting my time with people below me."

"Conceded, are we?" He mocked.

"Aware," she replied calmly, "Aware of what I want, and aware that very little- if any- age appropriate guys I meet will actually be able to give me that."

He looked at her in dark amusement.

"And just _what _do you want?" He asked with a cocked eye brow.

"_Intelligence_, ya' pervert." She sneered, knowing full well what he had in mind.

He chuckled.

"A rarity, indeed." He acknowledged, stepping closed to her. She didn't move an inch.

Her heart, though. Her heart gave her away. Her eyes were frozen in contempt, her body a steady statue. She was trying her damnedest to make him believe that she didn't care that he was trying to intimidate her, that she wasn't affected by him.

And maybe, on an intellectual level, she wasn't. But on a primal, instinctual level, she was responding. And bringing her down to this level, Alec found pride in it. He always loved breaking down people who thought themselves strong.

She looked back up at the moon. A pure, innocent smile graced her face. And ruined her steely composure. To his own shock, this delighted Alec to a certain degree. Her innocent joy- it was refreshing.

He was directly in front of her, now, pressing her against a tree. The late-night fog swirled around them, giving the…embrace…an air of seclusion. He pressed his nose and lips against her throat, inhaling her scent. Magnolia lilies and cinnamon. How beautifully strange.

Before he knew what was happening, his tongue ran along a small patch of her throat, tasting her skin. Absolutely delicious. He did it again. Her heart rate increased, pumping more and more of her delectable blood through her body.

She was breathing quicker. Not louder. No, quieter, in fact. He almost couldn't hear her. He figured if he was human he wouldn't have heard a damned thing. But the sound wasn't his concern. What caught his attention- and held it in a vice grip- was the feel of her breast brushing against his chest. Layers of clothing were in between them, yes, but that didn't matter. Alec's imagination was running wild. How would it feel when not a shred of fabric was between them? How would they feel in his hands, all plump and round? The scenarios got worse, more vivid, and Alec felt his cock twitch in approval. How long was it since he had a good screw?

He tasted her skin once more, and her hips bucked into his. He growled deeply, trying to regain control.

_Too long. _He decided, after be engulfed with the scent of her arousal. The cinnamon was over-powering her floral scent. Other spices mixed in, too many to name. He didn't care. All he knew was that he wanted more.

Continuing to suck and lick at one spot on her neck (he noticed the blood reaching closer to the surface and he smirked to himself at the idea of giving her a "Love Bite"), Alec attached his hands to her waist, and slowly trailed them down to the hem of her skirt. He could feel blood pulsing just inches distal to his hands. He smiled, reached to her left hip and un-did the two buttons that tightened her skirt, allowing the fabric to fall to the damp forest floor.

Katherine rubbed her thighs together and Alec smirked, more of her intoxicating scent enveloping him. He ran his hands back up her waist, the fabric of her black tights blocking his skin from her's. That would have to be fixed.

His hands went under her top and she inhaled sharply, before snickering darkly.

By this time, his mouth had worked its way up to her left ear, worrying it senseless.

"Are you my wolf, Alec?" She inquired with cynical humor.

He smirked.  
"Far from it." He whispered, nibbling ever-so-slightly on her abused little ear. She rewarded him with a low, long moan.

Her slender hands floated towards his hips and slowly worked around them, before circling back around to his front. He stopped his operations- stood stone still- waiting for her next move.

Her slim fingers slid in between his trousers and his shirt, brushing the elastic waist of his boxers. Alec growled deeply in her ear and worked his mind to focusing on not crushing her ribs that lay under his hands. He could have sworn that every ounce of venom in his veins rushed south-ward, making the poor young man incredibly uncomfortable.

She gripped the tails of his shirt and gradually un-tucked it, purposely sweeping the tips of her fingers along his lower abdomen. He growled again. He felt her cheek graze his as she smiled.

Then, the moment was broken.

A mechanical vibration emerged from the right pocket of Katherine's capelet. Alec growled loudly- this time in annoyance- but stayed right where he was.

Katherine reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone, sliding her thumb across the screen and read her new text message.

She slid the phone back into her pocket and slipped away from him. Well, he_ did _release her. Because, let's be honest, she didn't stand a chance against him if he didn't want her to. Either way, she was away from him and the tree, pulling up her skirt.

Alec was still propped against the tree, starring at the place she once stood.

She chuckled. "Sorry, dude. Guess it's not your lucky night."

He hissed.

"Cool story, bro." She smirked, before turning and making her way out the woods.

* * *

Katherine walked up the cobblestone drive-path towards her dorm house. The front light was on, illuminating the door. The curtains of the common-room window were closed, but lit, so some of the girls were still up.

She opened the door and turned to her left, stepping through the open arch-way and into the room where a few of her dorm-mates inhabited the chairs and couches. She sat on the nearest couch, opposite end of another girl. They all looked at her, eager for the story as for why she was out so late- even for her.

She looked around at them menacingly, mockingly considering whether or not she was going to tell them. Of course she was going to tell them. That's just how this stuff worked.

"So get this," She started, resting her elbows on her knees and leaning forward. The other girls followed suit.

* * *

"She _will _be mine." Alec swore to Demetri, who had been viciously inquiring as to what happened in the forest ever since Alec returned to the manor/palace in which the Volturi reside.

Demetri chuckled before lifting himself from his seat. "You have fun with that, bud." He offered sarcastically, patting Alec on the shoulder before sprinting after Jane, who had walked past Alec's room about a minute earlier.

Alec smiled. It was no secret that the older vampire was "crushing" on Alec's twin sister. A little twisted, being that Demetri was about five years older than the thirteen year old. However, Alec had eventually learned to embrace the idea. Demetri was one of his best friends-his sister's as well- and Jane (at 12 centuries old) was _definitely_ old enough to make her own decisions.

He himself walked over to his desk, opened the top right drawer, and pulled out his iPod- a 'just because' gift from Jane- turning on the Shuffle feature right as Demetri's screams filled the halls.


	2. Rainy Monday

_**Chapter Song: "Rainy Monday" by Shiny Toy Guns**_

_***The Italian at the beginning of this chapter and anywhere else in this story is the illegitimate child of Google Translate. I will not be held liable for any mistakes. Translations at the bottom.**_

_**~I  
~II  
~III  
**_

"_And you don't know, how hard I've tired, to convince myself that I can easily forget. But you've left this feeling here inside me. One that never fails to find me…"_

_**~IV**  
**~V**  
**~VI**  
_

"Caio. Lei parla inglese?"[I]

"No, le mie scuse."[II]

"Che va bene."[III] Katherine informed the cashier with a reassuring smile.

"Seriously, though, I **can't believe you**!"

Katherine glanced at her dorm neighbor, Alexandria¸or Andy as only her closest friends call her. The moment Kathy had walked into their room, Andy spun around in Kathy's desk chair, petting her stuffed cat-Snow. Katherine promptly mocked the Godfather reference before diverting into the closet to dress for bed.

"It's just so…..**sluty!**"

"You mean like you?" Katherine retorted in good humor. Andy was known for the idea of '_love_ thy neighbor'. Lucky for Katherine, Andy didn't take the 'neighbor' part literally.

"Yes!" she shouted even louder. Girl knew how to make a scene, that's for sure. "Like me! And Beck, and every other girl in our dorm hall! But not like **you!**"

"Grazie."[IV] Katherine thanked the cashier, her and Andy grabbing the bags.

"Hai una bella giornata."[V]

"Anche voi."[VI] She called as they left the store.

"Listen," she addressed her companion, "It's not even that slutty. Not by today's standards. It was like a 90s make out session. We didn't even touch anything _inappropriate_." She emphasized the final word with a dripping over-reaction.

"Would you have?" Andria asked, dead serious. She was worried about her friend. What happened, what Katty had told her, it was just so…not Katty.

Katherine silenced, thinking it through. "I think so. And that scares me. I know I'm not ready, especially not for someone I don't know. It was just so…intense. I got caught up in the moment."

"You_ never_ get caught up in the moment."

"I know that, Andy." Katherine sighed, "Look, dude, it was a onetime thing, alright? I'm never going to see this guy again. And even if I do, I'll be ready for it. I won't be caught off guard like last night."

Andy studied her face, trying to detect any sign of fib. Finding none, she changed the subject.

"So, I hate Mr. Denny."

* * *

Katherine closed and locked her door. Nothing against the girls, just a force of habit. Privacy and all.

Rain pattered against her window and a mild flash of blue crept through the cracks in the curtain. A sense of calm and home floated up inside her and she moved towards the opening, pulling the curtains aside.

The sky was a blue-tinted grey, clouds creating a seamless blanket that calmed the harsh light on the sun. Every now and then a flash of blue or purple or pink would illuminate a section of sky. Drops of water spotted the glass of her window, some starting races downward.

She smiled and lifted the bottom seal of her window carefully-accounting for the aged wood and glass. She raised it only an inch and a half, enough to gradually fill her room with the cool air and scent of the fresh rain without freezing her or soaking her small, over packed book shelf.

Taking in a whiff of the scented serenity, Katie smiled of the purest, most unbridled joy. Everyone she knew- family and friends alike- always made fun of her for finding such contentment in the most simple and childish of things.

She didn't care, though.

They were unhappy often, she had noted at an early age. Always finding something to complain about. Whilst she is no ignorant fool, she is no pessimist, either. She acknowledged the reality and searching for the good in it. Yes, sometimes she had to get a magnifying glass, and sometimes it wasn't enough to make her happy, but something good was always there. And that's the point. For every Yin, there will always be a Yang. It is the most basic law of the universe and one she finds great comfort in.

Walking over to her closet, Katherine reached up to the top shelf and took down three pillar candles of three different sizes. She placed the fattest one in the middle of her bookshelf, a shorter, equally stumpy one on its right and the taller, thinner one on its left.

Once each candle was ignited, she plucked the jack of her computer speakers into the corresponding port on her phone.

And, as with every rainy day, she turned to a playlist of Shiny Toy Guns and One Republic.

'Rainy Monday' by Shiny Toy Guns came on first.

_Cute_, she thought as she mentally acknowledged the irony of that song playing on a rainy day. Only this once had she ever paid attention to the lyrics.

_Assholes_, she mentally sneered, but didn't changed the song.

* * *

Alec looked up from his bed. Jane had entered his room.

He took out his earbuds and sat up, addressing his sister with a look of confusion.

She looked at him and smiled, sitting in a chair across from his bed.

"Demetri tells me you have a girlfriend."

Alec ignored this.

"You actually let him speak?" He joked. She smiled and looked down.

"He may be a bit of creep, but he's my friend." She admitted, looking back up at him with a devilish grin, "Now about this girlfriend…."

He growled lowly. "I never said anything about 'girlfriend'. Not once."

"'She will be mine'." Jane parroted back to him.

Alec sighed. "Yes, but-"

"So you'll make her your girlfriend?" She interrupted, knowingly and enthusiastically annoying the hell out of her little brother.

He growled louder and threw his bed-side table at her, which she dodged with ease. A loud crack emitted from his room with wood met stone wall and splintered into pieces; papers, books, clocks and other miscellaneous items strewn about. Jane was a giggling mess.

Caius, who happened to be walking by the opened door, stopped and stared in, shooting Jane a questioning look.

"Alec's got a girlfriend." She said with a childish smile.

"She is not my girlfriend!" The boy in question shouted from behind a corner Caius could not see around. He shook his head with a chuckle and continued down the hall.

Alec was fuming.

"You suck, Jane."

She giggled more.

Alec took a seat at the corner of his bed and waiting for the giggle fit to wear out.

Eventually, she had calmed down enough speaking coherently.

"Honestly, brother," She began, completely serious, "What are your intentions with this girl?" Her voice was laced with sisterly concern.

"Lunch?" He shrugged, falling back on his bed.

Jane crawled up and lay next to him.

"Are you sure?" she inquired.

"Why are you asking?" he hissed, looking at her from the corner of his eye. She was studying the ceiling.

"Alec," she started slowly, as if still thinking of her words, "if your intentions for her were as simple as a meal, she wouldn't have gotten away, fuck or no fuck. You would have drained her then and there. But you didn't. You let her go. You let her live another night. Why?"

He mulled over her words. Why had he let her go? He had never even considered not letting her go. In fact, he never really considered her a meal. He had just filled himself when he got bored and went wandering. He started following her because she was entertaining, not because he was stalking his prey. That had all been an afterthought.

"I-I don't know." He answered truthfully.

She heard the confusion in her brother's voice and she hated it. She hated feeling like a weak little kid and hated when Alec felt like one even more. And even more so, she hated that she couldn't help him.

Alec felt his sister's hand cover his in a comforting gesture. He looked out of his rain covered window at the full moon. He wondered if she- Katherine- saw the moon tonight; so clean and crisp in the freshly polished sky. Would it make her happy? He smiled when he thought of her pleasure of the moon last night. So simple. Sometimes the most simple of pleasures are the best.

* * *

Katherine leaned back in her desk chair, stretching. She turned her head to the right and looked out the window. The moon.

She smiled.

Using her feet, she propelled her chair further from the desk (using quite a lot of force to move two inches across the carpeted floor) and she raised, sea legs wobbling towards the window. She opened the window further and blew out her candles, giving the smoking a few minutes to air out.

She gathered up her books and papers and returned them to her back pack. She then adjusted her maroon sweatpants that had 'Gryffindor' up the left side in gold letters. She wasn't a devote Potter-head, but she liked the series enough and sweats were comfy, so there you go. She pulled down her black tank top (she had a lot of those) and closed her window and blinds, leaving out her candles to re-solidify.

With an empty stomach openly voicing its opinion, Katie jogged down three flights of stairs and into the kitchen. Andy and Beck were up.

She greeted them passively and went to the cupboard, searching for an easy snack to settle her stomach before bed.

Snatching a pack of strawberry Pop-Tarts, she tore the silver packaging open and walked back out to join the other two.

"And then she was like-"

A howling dog interrupted Beck's story.

"Ah-ooooo!" Andy and Katie mocked loudly while Becky laughed at their childish antics.

"Anyway," Becky started again, "She looked at me and said-"

"What the…" Andy commented in confusion, looking out the window into the blackness.

Katie and Beck followed suit, both squinting, trying to see past the dark.

Suddenly, Katie caught sight of it.

A monstrous looking creature, like a human-sized grey-hound body-builder, was running full speed ahead and their kitchen window.

Fear gripped at Katherine's heart as she quietly voiced everyone's opinion.

"Oh…fuck."

_**Please review  
**_

_***[I] Hello. Do you speak English?  
[II] No, my apologies.  
[III] It's alright.  
[IV] Thank you.  
[V] Have a nice day.  
[VI] You too.**_


	3. Envy

**_A/N: _**_General memory.  
'Specifically thought'  
"Spoken"  
Vivid memory/Dream  
"Imagined memory/Dream"  
_

**_Characters are based on book descriptions, not movie depictions.  
Chapter Song: Envy by Chevelle  
~I  
~II  
~IIII_**

_"I learn through sorrow, I burn with envy and go...to the wall."  
_

_**~IV  
~V  
~VI**  
_

Demetri bolted up.

Wolf.

There was a wolf near the city.

A low, menacing growl echoed down the hallway.

Caius.  
So he had smelt it as well.

Felix heard their approaching master and sat up straight, before getting yanked out of his set all together.

Pulling Felix by the sleeve, Demetri stormed out of the Upper Guard common room, growling towards Ciaus "We'll handle it."

He hated wolves.

No, not Ciaus, everyone knows Ciaus hates the wolves.

It's Demetri. He loathes them. Absolutely despises their very existence. he never really understood why. Maybe his instincts in that particular area were just stronger than most other vampires'. The point is: he _hated _werewolves.

* * *

"Don't. Move."

Katherine, Andy and Rebecca stood frozen. The outer wall of the kitchen had been destroyed- including the sink. Water was everyone. All of the girls quickly decided that they were not going to be the ones to mop it all up.

The mutant grey-hound from hell- on all fours and still taller than everyone else in the room- turned to face Katherine.

She drew her poker face and her alpha stance. It was commonly accepted as a theory that predatory animals could sense fear in the creatures around them. Judging by it's build, Katherine could guess that this thing was far from a vegetarian. If it _could_ sense fear, she wasn't going to give it anything.

Andy- hyperventilating, sweating and eyes darting all around the room- didn't get the memo apparently.

The canine moved closer to Katherine, sniffing her, judging her. She hardly noticed.

_Full moon. Mutant dog. Howls like wolf. Runs like hell. _She looked to the missing wall, water from the busted sink spraying broken pieces of siding. _Extremely high pain tolerance. Strange skeletal structure. Full moon. Full moon. Full moon. Oh fuck, no._

_Werewolf.  
_It was the only plausible explanation, regardless of how obscure it was. Katherine had always accepted the existence of paranormal things. Thinking that humans are the finality of evolution? Egotistical at best, just plain stupid at worst. Human's were undeniably weak - both in body structure and immune systems. Human's being the best evolution could do after billions of years of guess and check work was disappointing. No, she was too smart to _not _believe in the paranormal.

_Werewolf. Silver._

Maybe it's a myth, maybe not. It's all they've got, so it's worth a shot.

She looked to Andy, starring intently, hoping to get her attention without startling the mutt.

It worked. The panicking 14 year old looked over to her friend, frantic eyes meeting steady ones.

Gently, Katherine tapped the a charm on her charm bracelet. Her _silver _charm bracelet.

Andy noticed the movement in Katherine's shoulder and looked down her arm. The bracelet? What about it? She looked back up in confusion.

'Silver.' Katherine mouthed. Andy's eyes were still blank. Of course. Le cerveau d'Alexandria shut down in a crisis.

Out of the corner of her eye, Katherine saw movement.

Becky- on the other side of the puppy- was backing away.

_Please be smarter than Andy. Please be smarter than Andy. Please be smarter than Andy._

Slowly-ever so slowly- Rebecca inched her way to the china cabinet.

_Genius!_

With the dog still distracted by sniffing Kathy, Becky carefully opened a drawer of the cabinet. This thing was a demon dog on a full moon. Andy may be brain dead, but Beck sure as hell wasn't.

She grasped the handle of a pure silver knife- the antique of one of the other girl's grandmother.

If it wasn't a werewolf, the knife would still work. If it _was_ a werewolf, well, better safe than sorry.

Knife in hand, Beck started back towards the wolf. Oh God. She was going to have to stab it. Could she? Could she _stab _something? _Kill _it?

The wolf suddenly growled, and Becky saw the corner's of it's mouth pull back. It was snarling. Not a good sign. it was snarling at Katherine. Even worse.

The creature made a move to stand up, and Becky leaped. She attached to it's back and- puppy mid growl- she impaled the knife into it's neck. Nothing was going to hurt her friends. Nothing.

The puppy from hell howled in agony and collapsed to the floor, Becky still on it's back.

Katherine quickly moved to help Beck up while Andy just starred at the dead creature, still held tight in fear's stead-fast grip.

"You're awesome." Katie told her red-headed friend as said ginger wiped the demon dog's blood onto her pants.

"You're damn right I am." Beck replied with a smile. "You okay there, A?"

"Ehhh-oooh-uuuhh."

Katherine and Rebecca burst out in laughter. Poor Andy, reduced to baby-jargon. Katherine thought of the speeches that they had to give in Oral Communications class on Monday. Hopefully she'd snap out of it by then. If not, class was going to be interesting.

"Where is everyone?" Rebecca asked. It was then Katherine had really noticed the strangest part of the evening. Not that a giant werewolf burst through their kitchen wall, but that no one had woken up when it happened.

_Oblivious girls are going to get their asses kidnapped one day, I swear to God._

"A vaild question, don't you agree, Felix?"

Katherine's head snapped up and she looked to the kitchen- foyer archway. Two men occupied it. The one who spoke- or she assumed it was him- looked Middle Eastern. Maybe Northen-African? He had olive skin, perfectly smooth and clean, with thick, but shapely, dark eyebrows. His hair- also very dark- was long with a slight wave-ish texture to it, part right above his right eyebrow. He looked Egyptian, the more she thought about it. Moroccan, maybe?

The one with him- he was huge. He nearly rivaled the now-dead dog. He had a similar complexion, though lighter. He looked slightly tan while the other looked more exotic. His hair was also dark, though not as pitch black, and shorter- cropped. He was scary looking, this "Felix" character. Katherine thought of her dad. Her dad was big, too. Not as big as "Felix"- the latter having a few inches on her father- but big. And scary when he wanted to be.

She wondered if Felix was like her dad in other ways. Did her like pulling pranks and laughing at other people's expense. She liked that. It's how she was raised. She never laughed at a weak person, though. Neither did her dad. There are certain rules to proper trolling. You only pick on those whom of which you know can handle it. Did "Felix" follow this rule.

Katherine felt a nudge on her arm. Becky was starring her in the eyes. What did she want? What was she saying? Katie couldn't get any indication-

Eyes.

_Eyes?_

She looked quickly at the two men's eyes. Red. Like, her favorite-red-nail-polish red. Not albino red. No, they couldn't have that dark of hair or skin and be albino. And either way, albino eyes are more pink than red. This was straight up **red**.

Werewolves and red-eyes. What. The. Hell.

* * *

Aro examined the three human girls in front of him and his brothers.

These girls- one of which appeared to have some sort of mental defect- fought a werewolf, and lived.

Fascinating.

He looked to the middle one, the strongest one, the one who seemed to be in charge.

"Katherine, was it?" He asked.

"Yes." She confirmed steadily. Her eyes were solid, her posture exuding leadership and fortitude.

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance, my dear." He greeted with a smile, extending his hand in an offer. She examined it thoroughly, her eye's nearly burning a hole through his marble skin.

_Distrusting little creature._

Eventually, she rest her hand in his.

Memories flashed through his mind as he slowly bowed down to kiss her delicate feature.

_Mother. Father. Birthday. Christmas. Grandmother. Toy cat. 'Snow'. Bike, accident. School. Anger. Child, injury. 'Telekinesis'. 'Supernatural' . 'Corruption' , 'Murder', 'Physics' ._

His lips made contact with her skin.

_Father, military. Move- Italy. Boarding school. Dorm house. Friends. Betrayal. "You're mean...bye." "You're an idiot." "How could you be that dumb?" "Don't talk about things you don't know."_

He retracted his lips and stood up, still keeping tight on her hand.

_"Grow up." "Why can't you be more like William?" Pain. Anguish. Suicide. She sat on her dormitory bed, rocking back and forth. Throat raw, eyes sore, cheeks irritated from all of the tears. She brought her fist to her mouth, extended her middle and fore finger, along with her thumb. She put her two fingers into her mouth, brought down her thumb, and curled her other two fingers further into her hand. "Gun shot. Her body fell over. Gore covered the wall behind her. The image zoomed out and back in on her face, showing the remains of gaping hole in the back of her head. The shot zoomed further in on her eyes. Her completely dead eyes. It was over. There was finally no more pain. She would never cry again." She was alive again, fingers in mouth, repeating the exercise over and over. Over and over. As if it was a stress- release._

_Walk. Calm. Singing. Walk, calm, singing. Every night. Walk, calm, music or singing. Walk, calm, singing. Boy. Alec. Annoyance. Lust. Distraction. Anger. 'Fucking idiot.' "So slutty!" Slut. Such a slut. Disgusting. Never be caught off guard. Never be stupid. Always be prepared. Never be distracted. Expect everything.  
_

_Studying. Homework. Food. Howling. 'Wolf. Demon. Werewolf. Silver. Men. Red-eyes. Vampires? Leaders. Vampires? Demons? Hand. Danger. Control. No. Bad. Never let someone have control over you. Never be caught off guard. Always be ready. Don't be stupid. Don't be stupid.'  
_

_'Hand. Why? Not letting go. Why? Vampire? Power? Telepathy? Why? Telepathy?'  
_

_'GET OUT, YOU LITTLE FUCK!'  
_

Aro jumped and looked her in the eyes, confused.

_'Telepathy.'_

She yanked her hand away.

Aro continued to stare at the girl. Thousands of years, he's been alive. Millions of people he's come in contact with. But this girl...she was so...strange. So hard on herself. Always striving to be the best. William. her cousin. Straight A student in the Top 10% of his class. 'You're mean'. Her best friends. Krysten and Abbey. 'Idiot, dumb, stupid'. Her parents.

Never, in all of eternity, will Aro understand just how some parents can fail so miserably. This poor girl, so vividly imagining killing herself. Her own gruesome finality. And to have this as a mechanism to calm one's self? Disturbing.

She was a smart girl. Identified the werewolf, identified his gift, and identified (whether she was sure of it or not) his kind.

Telekinesis. The injured child. He had been mocking her, then he took a stapler to the head. Another child, a tether ball to the face. A lamp had flown across a room and into a wall when she was mad, once. She repressed the gift. Maybe they could dig it back up.

The door to the meeting room opened. No, they were not in the dining hall. There was no need for that, for they were not dining. They were in the meeting room. It was like a human's dining room. Large enough for people, but quaint. There was a table, were they occasionally sat. Marcus and Caius sat, the girls and Felix and Demetri stood. He offered the girls seats, but Katherine had declined for all of them.

_Never be caught off guard._

Aro looked at the door and saw that Jane and Alec had joined them.

Alec.

Aro smirked.

The boy had worked his charms on Katherine once before, maybe he could do it again. Get her to come out of her shell. The more comfortable she was here, the better chance they had at accessing her gift.

* * *

Alec and his sister walked through the door when a familiar scent caught his attention. Magnolia lilies and cinnamon. Katherine.

Aro looked up and smirked at him. It was then Alec noticed that Katherine's hand was in Aro's.

Son of bitch.

"Dear boy," Aro addressed in that mischievous tone of voice he was so good at, "Why not take Miss Katherine up to your room. Temporarily, of course, until we get a room for her set up."

That damned smirk told Alec all he needed to know. Fucking Aro, the fucking match-maker.

Before Alec could respond with his mandatory 'Yes, Master', Aro's head jolted down to face Katherine.

"Oh, why yes, of course we will handle Alexandria and Rebecca." His master reassured the girl. Alec hadn't heard her speak. Had she figured out Aro's gift? "Fret not, my young child, all will be taken care of."

"I won't fret," She spoke calmly, "I don't fret when I'm in control. I will not leave your company until I've decided that every important detail is handled."

Caius smirked. It appeared as though he had taken a liking to Katherine. Good. One less person to piss him off.

Aro sighed. "Very well. If you must know, Rebecca and Alexandria will be returning to your dormitory with Demetri and Felix- who will fix your kitchen before going around the area and verifying that the wolf was alone before they return here."

"Very well." Katherine accepted in a rather...politic tone, Alec observed. No emotion. These weren't two people she knew. No, these were chess pieces. Pawns in her wicked game.

Aro smiled. "Fantastic! Now, Alec, please take Miss Katherine to your room. I'm sure she could use a rest."

Alec nodded, and Katherine turned to face him. He smirked as he saw a flash of surprise and recognition flash through her eyes before she had the chance to suppress it. She seemed like the type to hide herself from others, it was a sense of accomplishment that he could rustle her nearly mastered composure so easily.

"Follow me, Katherine." He commanded smoothly, smirking at her. She stared as she approached him, her eyes still blank, refusing to let on that he was anything to her other than a common worker, another pawn. But the slight increase in her heart rate- and the faint scent of cinnamon he caught- gave her away.


	4. Falling

_**A/N: I have two other chapters in the works, but I'm not going to update unless I get prove of some kind of interest in this story. If you like it, or have opinions on how to better it, please tell me. I don't want to waste my time on a story nobody wants to read.  
**_

_**Readers under 17 years of age- beware.  
Chapter song: Falling- Michelle Featherstone  
~I  
~II**_**_  
~III  
_**

_"I'm shaking down to my boots. I've loosened all those sturdy roots that kept me grounded."  
_

**_~IV  
~V  
~VI_**

"Fun night you've had." Alec commented as they walked to his room.

"Interesting," She corrected off-handedly, "to say the least."

"How did you guys do it?" He asked.

"Hm?"

He paused. What did she think he was asking her? How they made cookies?

"Survive the wolf." He explained. Katherine smiled on the inside. No, he definitely wasn't her wolf. He was a vampire.

She couldn't wrap her mind around. No, not that werewolves and vampires exist, as previously stated; she already accepted that possibility a long time ago. Not even that she almost fucked a vampire. Does anyone really know who they're fucking?

No, what caught her was that she had almost fucked. That was stupid. STDs, pregnancy, reputations, one's mental status, all viable reasons to _not _take that stuff lightly. She was smarter than putting herself at such a major risk.

The risks she takes are always calculated. What happened two nights ago was a fluke, a mistake. Who the hell knows, maybe her calculator died or something. The only she can do now is change the batteries and make sure she doesn't make the same mistake.

She just had to focus.

"Silver," she told him, focusing on moving forward, not on how fucking good he smelled. "'Giant mutant dog' plus 'full moon' equals 'kill it with silver'."

He made a small noise of approval and they continued to walk in silence.

"Why did Aro keep me?"

Alec looked at her. She was still looking forward, though she was noticeably tense. He smirked. She was avoiding looking at him.

"Do you know more than you should?" He purred. Her hand twitched and her eyes clouded momentarily. He chuckled lowly.

"How much am I suppose to know?" She inquired, acting unfazed. He would have believed her, too, if her physical reaction hadn't given her away.

"Not a lot." He admitted with a laugh.

She smirked. "Then I guess I'm in trouble."

He laughed again, opening the door to his room and allowing her to pass inside.

Katherine stepped in and looked around. She was in a short hallway that led into the large room. The walls were painted in a deep red, kind of burgundy, and lit by what she guessed was a yet-to-be seen en-suite fireplace. There was a wooden desk that was covered in miscellaneous items that would- in all regularity- cover a desk. Above the desk was a wall-mounted television whose remote control was, like the fireplace, yet to be seen. She walked a little further in and saw the remote on the arm of a brown-fabric mahogany-framed chair. The chair and his brother sat on either side of a large bay window that had large curtains drawn to cover the majority of it. Katherine looked to her left and saw an...ample sized bed that was more aglow than anything else in the room. She continued to walk on, planning on exploring the room more thoroughly.

Before she get too far away from him, Alec grabbed her wrist, swung the door shut, and pressed her against the wall. A scent caught his attention.

_Cinnamon._

He smirked, leaning in closer to her, just inches separating them. The scent increased, as did his smug grin.

"Just how much trouble are you in, Katherine?" He hummed into her neck.

Katherine smirked. Something told her they weren't talking about Aro anymore.

"Nothing I can't handle." She assured him confidently. He nibbled on her neck, the same place he ave her a hickey two nights ago.

Katherine bit onto her lower lip, desperately trying to contain the moan that threatened to escape. An excellent multi-tasker, she also focused on her hips. The sons of bitches caused her trouble last time, she wasn't going to let them do it again. She pressed herself further against the wall, and further away from Alec.

His lips made their way to her ear. He seemed to like her ear, she noted. She felt his tongue tease her poor little ear. Her body tensed, her hips jerked towards him before she quickly retracted them like a owner yanking a dog away from traffic. Blood was pulsing further down south than she liked it to and her nipples tightened under her sports bra and tank top, the stupid assholes.

"You sure about that?" Alec mocked, his low, musical voice bathing her entire body in warmth. Again, she swallowed a moan and fought the urge to pull him closer.

"Yes," she growled, her fingers clawing against the wall with desire to touch me.

Fuck her body. The stupid ass thing was going to get her trouble.

He chuckled darkly and every cell in her body begged for him. Her legs wanted to wrap around his waist, keep him close as he filled her. Her hands want to feel every fucking inch of him, twitching- almost violently- with the denied desire. And everything else, every other part of her, wanted his hands. Wanted his touch, his lips. All over her.

Yes, God, yes, she wanted it. She wanted it so bad. To have him take her, here and now. To give her something she never knew. God, she wanted it so badly.

But she didn't. Her Super-Ego was screeching from the rooftops 'Stop, stop, for the love of everything Holy in this universe, STOP!'. It was reprehending her Id and Ego, telling them to shut up and give _it _control, because they are going to corrupt the Whole.

Loudly, her consciousness screamed at her 'Tell him to stop!'. But she wouldn't, she couldn't. There was mutiny in her psyche. Id and Ego teamed up and were taking over. God help us all.

She reached up and latched her fingers into his hair, bringing his face to meet her's before devouring his lips.

Alec growled into the kiss, tilting her head upward and running his tongue along her swelling lips. They opened eagerly and he thrust his tongue into her mouth, tasting her easily before her own tongue started playing with his. He was a happy contestant in her game.

Tongues busy, Alec quickly kicked off his shoes and socks while Katherine's sandals effortlessly fell from her feet. He ran his hands down her sides slowly, memorizing the feeling of her toned mid-section, before stopping at the scrunched waist band of her sweatpants. He felt her lift her hips from against the wall, giving him permission to remove the article of clothing from her.

Happily obliging, he tugged downward and the pants fell to the floor. Her slender hands reached to do the same service for him, unbuckling and unbuttoning and unzipping.

Suddenly, her kiss slowed. Alec fell into the new rhythm, confused as to the change. She had better not been thinking about stopping. That wasn't going to be possible at this point.

His concerns were shut off, though- as was all thinking- when a hand was softly brushing against _him._ The fabric of his underwear was keeping from skin-to-skin contact, but damn it all to hell, that didn't matter. Alec pulled away from the kiss and let out a throaty growl, bucking into her nervous hand.

Her hand darted away like frightened rabbit before slowly making it's way back to him, slipping threw the front hole of his boxers. Her fingertips brushed against him and his entire body tensed, a strangled noise erupting from his throat. Her hand froze in place again. Alec braced his hands on the wall and looked down into her eyes. They were far off, calculating. Gently, her hand wrapped around his cock, and the tips of her fingers brushed up and down.

Alec clawed into the wall, feeling drywall break off under his fingernails. As she quickened her pace and extended her span- now tracing the length of his shaft- Alec bit into his lip.

_She's human_, he reminded himself, _I have to be careful with her._

Her middle finger ghosted down him alone. The digit broke pattern and danced across his head.

A roaring growl exploded through the room as Alec yanked Katherine's hand away from him. She couldn't keep doing that, he couldn't have her doing that. This was all going to be over way too soon if she kept doing that.

His hands went to her shirt and started trailing up, leaving confusion in their wake. So cold. His hands were so cold, but they made her skin so hot. So hot. So fucking hot.

Katherine started panting, pressing into the wall, terrified. Her body was taking over. She couldn't have that. She couldn't let her body go. Bad things happened.

Alec kissed her jaw. She gasped and moaned longingly. God, his lips. So fucking good. More. She needed more.

Her hands roamed back to him, go directly for his suit jacket.  
She pushed it off of his shoulders and moved on to handle his shirt. Fucking button ups.

Alec removed his own hands momentarily, yanking off his suit jacket and ripping his own shirt off, not caring when buttons went flying. He growled in approval when her soft hands made contact with his bare skin. Gradually, he made his way back to his previous dealings. He was kissing down her neck, drawing the tank top up at a leisurely pace while her hands roamed freely across his chest and abdominal, when he lazily opened his eyes.

Further into his room, things were...floating. Random things- the buttons from his shirt, the remote control to the television, his iPod, his Volturi crest, thing like that. A possible explanation popping into his head, Alec continued to kiss Katherine's neck while his hands reached and elastic band. Gently, he slipped his hands under it and over the mounds it covered. Katherine groaned her approval and rubbed the lower portion of her body against his. A burst of cinnamon caught his nose, and the jerking of the levitating items caught his eyes.

So that's why Aro wanted to keep her.

Neat.

He turned his attention back to the girl, removing his mouth from her and yanking her top and bra over her head. Umber colored ringlets bounced over strong shoulders and a delicate collar bone. His eyes traveled up her elegant neck and jawline to swollen, pink lips. Her lips were parted and her cheeks flushed- a light rose blush washing over them. He looked into her eyes.

Chestnut brown looked up at him through thick eyelashes. They commanded one thing of him: _Bed. Now._

He smirked at her eagerness, but happily accommodated her demands.

Latching his hands onto her plump bum, Alec hoisted her up and to him. She made a small noise of surprise- something like an 'Eep'- and wrapped her legs around his torso. Her bare legs. Her bare, strong legs, pulling her closer to him.

He walked them to his bed- careful to avoid the random hovering objects that littered the airspace- and gently laid her down.

Carmine colored eyes met chestnut and Alec stopped short.

Katherine looked up at him innocently, her brown eyes swimming with child-like wonder. The roaring fire a few feet away cast a warm glow over her, giving everything about her a golden hue and a goddess feel.

Alec stared into her eyes, overcome by just how much...power this human girl had over him. Right now, at this moment, she looked up at him- so open, completely exposed both emotionally and physically- in total trust. He had the idea that she had been hurt. The look that Aro had when he finished reading the girl's thoughts, it told a story. Her attitude (or what he's seen of it) only furthered to confirm this. This child, this damaged young lady, put her trust in him.

Gingerly, he crawled over top of her, braced himself on his arms, buried his fingers into her soft hair, and met her lips with his.

This kiss was calmer, she noted, less frantic than the one earlier. There was no more desperation. They had all of the time in the world.

Her hands burrowed into his silky locks as her legs wrapped around his waist, getting as close to him as she possibly could. It was terrifying. Absolutely horrifying. She _needed _him, needed his approval, needed his love- no matter how 'in the moment' or purely physical it was. She needed to be needed.

She felt the heat again, of when his hands touched her skin. Slowly, one hand trailed down her, tracing the curve of her breasts and drawing small circles on her tummy, memorizing her body. She moaned into his kiss the further down he went, her body stiffening when his steady fingers met the elastic waist of her less-than-fabulous underwear. She mentally scolded herself for wearing her white, 6 to a pack Hanes. How the hell was she suppose to know somebody else was going to see them?

Alec didn't seem to care. He hooked his fingers to the band and pulled down, stripping her bare. In an instant, his own were gone.

Katherine opened her eyes leisurely, barely peeking through her lashes. Above her, Alec had done the same, gazing at her through heavy lids. His deep-red eyes questioned her softly, asking for permission. She smiled against his lips, rubbing her hips against his. He growled and his eyes shut tight.

He spread her legs apart, becoming engulfed with the scents of cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg. Venom pooled in his mouth, mixing with her essence as their tongues played battle.

Slowly, gently, he slipped into her.

A deep growl rumbled through his chest as her soaking heat surrounded him, her slick walls tight and pulsing. His hands broke into the mattress below him as he tried his damnedest not to hurt the young lady laying under him.

He heard a slight whimper of pain break from her lips and noticed her squirming, trying to adjust her body to the unprecedented invasion.

Alec broke their kiss, attaching his lips to her ear, whispering sweet nothings to her.

Her face twisted in pain. She knew to expect this, she had read about it enough. Still, it hurt. Like...a lot. His voice, though, his voice was making it better. It was like hot fudge over a scope of ice cream on top of a warm brownie. It covered her with love- feigned or not. He whispered to her that she was beautiful- gorgeous. That he loved the feeling of her, the sounds she made, the scent she had- everything. Soon enough, his words distracted her enough from the pain that her body finally relaxed. With great care, he started to move.

The pace was easy, slow, caring. She fell into rhythm simply, meeting his hips with each deep and long thrust he gave. Rich moans ripped from her body and tears stung at the corners of her eyes. She didn't know why, she wasn't in that much pain anymore. She was just so happy, so fulfilled. It was so unknown to her, but gladly accepted.

Her entire body got cold, tightening up in unrivaled pleasure. Her breaths her shallow and her heart racing.

"Faster," she begged in a breathy voice, her hands lightly clawing at his back. He chuckled lowly against her throat and increased the speed. She panted and moaned and clawed at him, the bedspread- anything she could reach- as her world became undone in a mess of screams and chanted 'Alec's and 'yes's.

"Fuck, Al-Al-Alec!" She screamed loudly as she came, biting into his neck, her walls clamping around him. He let out a ferocious growl and gave one last, deep thrust, before joining her in oblivion.

* * *

She had fallen asleep shortly thereafter, snuggled up next to him. After he heard her heartbeat steady, Alec swiftly moved her under the covers and dashed into the bathroom, showering her scent from him. He knew the others either already knew or were going to find out soon, but what the hell, why give them more ammo?

After his quick shower, he re-dressed (grabbing a new shirt from the closet, seeing as half of the buttons on his were missing), kissed a sleeping Katherine's cheek, and sought out his sister.

He needed advice.


	5. I'm Not The One

_**A/N: I got a few favorites and story alerts and one review. So, HunterRaven, I want to give you a little thanks. Sincerely, your review was absolutely wonderful and made my day. I'm so glad that you enjoy the story and I 'm flattered beyond words by all of your incredible compliments :) Thank so, so much =)**_

_**Chapter Song: I'm Not The One by 3OH!3  
~I  
~II  
~III  
**_

_"You're way too young to play these games, but you better start...I'm not the one who wants to hurt you."  
_

_**~IV  
~V  
~VI**  
_

"I don't like this, Jane, not one bit." Alec complained as he sat on his sister's bed. She had been waiting for him- the damned psychic. She was sitting at her desk when he walked down her hall and into her room. Her innocent smile and the glint in her eyes told him that she knew all. She always knew all. Only five minutes older than him, she was five minutes wiser, too. Guess those five minutes really count.

"I know you don't." She told him in a soft voice, "You never have. And you shouldn't. Think about it, Alec. Our parents handed us off to be burned alive, so there's one major blow on your view of dependent relationships. Then there's Marcus- completely dead inside with the lose of his mate. Then that Cullen boy came here with his broken-heart grievances, which only reinforced the dangers of having a mate. You're a player, sex-for-sex. No emotions. Then this little human comes in and turns you all around. I'd be worried if you _did _like it. Seriously, I'd have Aro call in a Necromancer to bring Sigmund Freud here."  
She laughed.

He smiled weakly before asking, "What do I do?"

She thought for a moment. He could see the wheels turning as she thoroughly contemplated his question.

"You're going to want to run." She told him, "To hide from her, from your feelings-"

"You mean like you and Demetri?" He smirked. She threw a pencil at him.

"That's different. Demetri is flirting. You and...Kaitlin?-"

"Katherine."

"_Katherine_. You and Katherine have gone far past that. You've got to own up to this."

Alec rested his chin in his hand and starred at the wall. "What if I don't want to?"

Jane sighed. "Then you're going to end up like Marcus, anyway. You said she's gifted, right?"

"Yes."

"Then Aro is going to keep her." She smiled, "You have all of eternity to figure this out."

He cracked another weak smile.

"What do I do if she doesn't feel the same way?"

His sister groaned dramatically and feel backwards in her chair with a sarcastic laugh. "God, you are so _pathetic. _And I thought Cullen was bad."

"Shut up!" He bit, wiping his hair to hide his embarrassed eyes.

Eventually she recovered from her over-dramatized reaction and went to her brother, placing a hand on his shoulder, looking him dead in the eyes and reiterating, "Eternity, Alec. All of eternity. Win her over."

* * *

Andy rummaged through Katie's closet. She had woken up this morning and told Rebecca of her weird dream, only to be informed that none of it was a dream. That Katie- _her _Katie- was really locked in a building with those...things. No, she did not like that.

Blindly, she stuffed a white camisole and a pair of jeans from the lower shelf of the closet into her backpack. Opening the door to a mini, in-closet dresser, she snatched a pair of panties out of it before turning to begin her trek into the city.

Rain pattered on the window. Andy reached into the closet again, grabbing an umbrella and a hoodie for Kathy.

* * *

Katherine awoke easily, happily snuggling deeper into the insanely comfortable mattress. Her eyes opened with the ease that only comes after a good, hard sleep, and noticed a dark room.

The fire had long since simmered down, now just a few bright embers in a piled of ash, and the sun was still sleeping. Katherine was always an early riser- giving farewells to the moon as well as greetings to the sun. She was always in between. In between morning and night, between child and adult, between sanity and madness. She had to balance delicately, it's true, but it was worth it. For from this tight-rope, strung far above and right down the middle of life, she could see all. She could see every aspect of everything- flaws and perfections- without being caught in the whirlpool of it all. The only catch? She _had _to stay balanced.

Katherine sat up and looked down at her naked body.

_Which is why, _she thought, _this can never happen again._

She had fallen from her tight rope. She had lost her balanced and got mixed in with everything else. The fall was terrifying. Exhilarating to a degree, but far to dangerous. It was done. She had experienced the fall, so now never again would she have to. Now she had to climb the ladder, get back on the rope, and keep her goddamned balance.

Her head fell back onto the pillow and she inhaled, Alec's scent embracing her.

She felt the rope quiver.

* * *

Andy stormed into the doors she recalled from her "dream", got into the elevator, and walked right up to two kids when the doors opened. She looked at the girl.

"You," She started to command, "I can't believe I'm really about to say this, but...take me to your leaders. And you," she turned to the boy, tossing him her backpack, "take that to Katherine, tell her to get dressed, then bring her to meet us."

The two looked at each other with amused smirks before the boy walked off, backpack in hand. The girl turned and led the way down another hall. "Right this way, ma'am."

Andy could hear the judgmental laughter in her voice.

* * *

Katherine stepped out of the bathroom- smelling sufficiently of boy's hygiene products- and started her search for her clothes.

Alec walked in. He gave her the once over, wet hair and one hand struggling to keep the towel up whilst the other held her underwear and bra, and tossed her the bag.

"Your friend from last night dropped it off," he told her as she caught- albeit , not gracefully- with her freest hand, "she wants you to change before meeting with her and our Masters."

"Cool," Katherine acknowledged thoughtlessly, looking through the items in the bag, "I used your stuff, by the way," she told him, nodded her head to the open and steaming bathroom door.

"That's fine." He smiled. It was more than fine. He liked it quite a lot, actually- for whatever reason.

"Cool," She muttered again, walking back towards the bathroom. She came out a minute later, fully dressed. She was wearing a pair of jeans. Not those...'skinny' ones that have come into fashion recently, the ones that the girl in the lobby wore. Not exactly flared either- not like the ones from the 1980s. He would have to ask Jane later. Her top was a form-fitting, white undershirt. It hugged her closely, like a second skin. He was quite happy with. Her hair, once matted down, was puffed out everywhere and being pulled back as she tied a hair band around it.

"Let's go," she said, walking towards him. He smiled, turned around, and led her to his Masters and her friend.

* * *

"Look," Andy started, staring this 'Aro' guy in the eyes, "I don't know who or _what _you are, but I do know something."

Aro raised an eyebrow and gave her a condescending smile. "And what, dear child, is that?"

She gave him her own 'you-must-be-stupid' look before replying, "That the sky is blue. Well, actually it's gray and leaking right now, but that's beside the point. The _point, _good sir, is that you are somehow, some way, related to that demon-dog from last night. Love or hate, I don't care. That thing was unnatural, you're related to it. Therefore, _you _are unnatural. And you're keeping my Kathy here. I don't like that."

Aro was about to respond when the door to his private office opened. He, his brothers and this Andy girl all turned. Jane didn't.

Alec and Katherine walked in. Alec went to join his sister, Katherine to Andy.

"What type of jeans are those?" Alec whispered to his sister.

She rolled her eyes. "Bootcut."

"Ahh."

"So what goes on?" Katherine asked, crossing her arms and looking from Aro to Andy.

"You're coming home." Andy told her.

"No she's not." Caius argued.

Andy glared.

"_Yes _she is."

"_No, _she isn't."

"Yes. She. Is."

"**No. **She. Isn't."

"YES SHE IS!" Andy shouted.

"Shut up!" Katherine yelled, pounding on Aro's desk with her balled up fist. "Both of you shut the fuck up! This is _not _Judge Judy. This is _not _Family Court and this is _not _a custody battle. So for the love of God, both of you just shut up and act the adult I know _you _are and I know _you _can be." She scolded Caius and Andy, respectively.

When neither showed signs of retaliation, she turned to Aro. Marcus was forgotten in the corner, as usual.

"Now what's this about me going home?"

"Miss Andy does not trust us." Aro explained.

Katherine paused, still looking Aro dead in the eye. She was focused, he noticed that. But she was not focused on him.

"Andy," She started calmly, now staring at the wall above Aro, "Please remove yourself from the room."

"What?" Andy argued, "Katherine-"

"Alexandria," Katherine started again, deathly calm with that dangerous undertone that a parent uses with a stubborn child (and that Aro often time had to use with the Guard), "Please remove your-"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah" Andy interrupted, backing out of the door, "Keep your panties on."

The door closed with a click and Katherine focused back on Aro.

"You've read my mind?"

He nodded.

"So you are aware of my prominent assumption as to you all" she motioned around the room with her hand, "are. Correct?"

He smiled and nodded again.

"Am I right?"

His smile grew.

"Fabulous." She huffed, falling back into the a chair in front of his desk. Thinking to herself, she took a few moments to gather everything that was running through her head.

"Okay," she started after a while, sitting up and refocusing on Aro, "Here's how it goes: I am _so _not staying here."

Caius growled.

"Shut up," Katherine commanded simply, holding up her index and middle fingers to address the 'just a minute' concept whilst still looking at Aro.

She was silent for a few moments, before leaning back in the chair.

"I'm not stupid enough to think I'm getting out of the this alive," She started, still slouching in her chair while looking intently at a spot on the floor, "I know I'm either going to die or be changed into one of you. Which, by the way, why hasn't that happened yet?"

Caius answered her, "The first few years in this life are chaotic and hectic. We don't want you to have to hone your gift and simultaneously deal with the stresses of being a newborn."

She nodded thoughtfully, bringing her hands to her lips in a very 'Godfather'-esque way.

Katherine took in a breath, then made her proposition.  
"Okay, so, a human living with vampires isn't going to work. This is how it _will _work: everyday after school, I come here for two and half hours. This allows me time to not only safely practice with my gift, but also become more comfortable with the place and people. On the weekends I will come and go as I please. After I feel I have enough control- which, trust me, will be sooner than you think- the change will happen. Understood?"

Aro smiled endearingly. "And _why, _child, do you think we would accept those terms?"

A wicked smile graced Katherine's lips as she leaned over his desk.

"Aro," she started sweetly, placing her hand over his, "I have something you want."  
_A stapler hitting a small child's head. A tether ball reversing direction and hitting a girl in the face. A lamp flying off of a table, across a large room, and into a wall._

"And I can take it away." The corners of her lips curved into a grin that rivaled the Grinch's.  
_A gun to her head. A noose around her neck. Her forearms cut open and bloody._

She leaned in further, whispering threateningly, "And don't think I won't."

She winked and turned to the door.

"Let's go," She called to Andy, who was pacing down the hall out of boredom.

Andy tossed her the red hoodie she had brought and Katherine slipped it on, both walking to the exit.

* * *

Alec left the office, strolling next to his sister.

He didn't like what he had seen in there. It disturbed it.

Katherine was only 13 years old. She had only existed on this planet _thirteen _years.

"She played that too well." Jane voiced his very thought. Goddamned 'twin telepathy'.

"I know." He growled in agreement.

"She's too young to play the game that well," Jane said, flabbergasted.

"I _know._" He growled deeper, annoyed that his sister kept bringing it up.

Jane didn't seem to get it. Where is that twin telepathy when you need it?

"She was talking about killing herself. Hell, she is killing herself! She's dying either way. Shouldn't she be upset? Beg for her life, her mortality? God, I'd expect something like that from Caius, but not a thirteen year old girl. _I _wasn't even that messed up when we were human. I mean, I get suicide, I guess. But..._bargaining _with your own life? I would do it, sure. But I'm thousands of years old. She's thirteen. Thirteen, Alec! And she regards her life like it's nothing more than a poker chip. It's not right. No, it's down right wrong. It's..."

Alec had stopped listening. He knew everything his sister was going to say, because they were thinking the same things. he just didn't want to hear someone say them out loud.

He felt a tug on his sleeve. He turned to see his sister.

"Have you talked to her yet? About your guys'...whatever it is?"

"No." He answered truthfully and kept walking. Or, he would have, if Jane wasn't still holding his sleeve.

"Well _do it._"

"Why?"

She spun him around and glared at him. That glare she got when she was about to "pain" someone. "Because I said so."

He put his hands up in a defensive gesture. "Okay, alright, calm down, I'm going."

He bolted down the hall.

* * *

"Katherine!" he called out to her. She and Andy turned around to see him on the other side of the lobby.

"I'll be right back," Katherine told her friend, before jogging to him.

"Yeah?" She asked nonchalantly.

"Uh..." Fuck, he had no idea how to do this, "Listen...about last night..."

She held up her hand to him as she did to Caius.

"I'm going to be flat out honest with you, Alec." She told him, "Last night was a fluke. Okay? It will _never _happen again. I've been burned one too many times to even considering getting _that _close to somebody, alright?"

He was stunned still. Until something clicked in his head. "Wait a minute," he started, looking down at her, "When we met, I asked you how many boyfriends you'd had and you said none. So what's this crap about being 'burned'?"

She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, "It's not _boys _that hurt me, ya' moron. It's my family, my friends. People I was suppose to be able trust, people I gave my heart and soul to, hurt me. Bad." She started chocking on tears, trying to hold them back and maintain her 'strong, independent woman' composure, "Look at Andy. She's my closest friends in the whole wide world. She _needs _me and she's made that clear multiple times. And I love her. But if she were to drop dead right now, I'd move on just as easily as you would. Because I'm only close to her on an intellectual level. People don't get into my Emotions Vault, Alec. I've had too many robberies and now security is better than that of a Swedish bank.

"_You, _however." She laughed, shaking her head, "You got dangerously close to cracking the code last night. And I can't let that happen. So any and everything that happened between us, I suggest you forget it. Because that's what I'll be doing."

Her tears had dried and she turned away from him, walking back to Andy. The two opened up the exiting doors and walked out into the empty streets of a rainy, Sunday, Volterra morning.

Alec watched as Katherine pulled her red hood up and disappeared into the gray bleakness.

_**A/N: Okay, I have question. Do you guys mind having so much interaction between other people? Like with Katherine and her friends or Alec and Jane? I ask because sometimes it bugs me when authors do that. If you do, I'll try to make it more Alec/Katherine oriented, but I'm really just trying to fully develop the characters before diving right into a relationship (it bugs me even more when authors do that)**_


	6. Fighting For Nothing

_**A/N: Thank you so much to Stargazer1364 and HunterRaven for reviewing my last chapter :)  
**_

_**Stargazer- I apologize in advanced, because I don't think you're going to like Andy much after this chapter. So...yeah...sorry about that. *sheepish grin* I'm hoping that I might find a way to further explain what happens here in later chapters.  
**_

_**HunterRaven- I think you're psychic, because the term 'Mary Sue' is actually mentioned in this chapter in reference to Katherine. And I know the Volturi are a little OOC compared to what we've seen of them in the series, but that will be explained in later chapters. And thank you for your lovely compliment on the major metaphor last chapter, I was quite pleased with it as well :) lol  
**_

_**And to all: I apologize for the massive skip in timeline. I wish I could've found a way to incorporate Volturi-Human social hour in here, but it was too boring to be a chapter by itself and this chapter is already the longest one I've ever written (3,733 w/o A/N) so that wasn't going to happen. There will be Volturi interaction next chapter though.  
**_

_**Chapter Song: Fighting For Nothing by Meg & Dia  
~I  
~II  
~III**_

_"But you better know how to point out the liars. You've got to weigh your wars- make sure you're not fighting for nothing. Nothing."  
_

_**~IV  
~V  
~VI**  
_

_Next Friday_

Katherine leaned over the back of her desk chair, staring in the little mirror she had mounted on the side wall. One strand of curl was wrapped around a ½ inch barrel curler, having the heat from the iron and an extra bounce to it. She couldn't believe it. Monday at dinner, their RA had told them that there was a dance being held on Friday. It was a chance for the girls and the guys (who attended a separate private school) to mingle with each other. It was also…mandatory.

Katherine hated that word. Especially now. She hated dances. She never felt comfortable dancing in public, always felt like a fool. So she just sat at a table in the corner and talked to some old childhood friends while sweating and getting a headache from all of the cologne, perfume and heavy bass. She would normally just stay in, or maybe go to a movie with some other skippers. But no, she _had _to go this dance.

She leaned back. Well, maybe it wouldn't be so bad.

"You look pretty."

She turned to her bed. A mister Alec Volturi lounged comfortably, a lazy smirk graced his face.

She shot him a challenging glance. "Thank you." She told him in a provoking tone. After a total of 12 1/2 hours spent at the Volturi villa, she had developed some opinions of her leech-y companions.

Felix was, in fact, very much like her father. At least a part of him. Funny, stupid, and playful.

Demetri, he was alright. It was kind of awkward when they were alone, they didn't really click. Maybe, in time, they would become closer and the awkwardness would ease away.

Jane was another story. Jane _did not _like her. Maybe it was because of what Katherine had said to- okay, screamed at- Alec on Sunday. The whole 'forget it, because that's what I'll do' thing. But Alec didn't seem to beat up about it.

No, he didn't seem hurt at all. Which was good, because she sure as hell didn't want that kind of drama to deal with. Everyday, he would flirt with her- send her one _those _looks while they passed in the halls, start a perfectly innocent conversation with suggestive undertones, give her a brushing touch when ever the right time presented itself. It was slightly annoying, but he always stopped when she told him to and never tried to take it any further. Besides, she could handle a little flirting better than she could grubbing.

Last year she had met a boy- Randy. Three hours later, he told her she was the light of his eyes and no woman would ever mean as much to him. Needless to say, she crushed that into dust. Like, already ground beef in a meat mincer. and for good reason, seeing as it was a year later and she still got the random call or text telling her she was beautiful and special and how he wished she would just give "them" a chance. Creepy.

So, obviously, she was glad that he recovered from her total and complete rejection so well.

"Hey!"

Andy swung into the room, very much like Cosmo Kramer from _Seinfeld, _letting Katie's door bang against the wall before she slammed it shut.

"Hello, Alexandria." Alec greeted.

"Hey Alec." She greeted back in rush, turning to Katherine, "Quick question: What did Ms. Stewart say the four main causes of World War I were?"

"Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism and Nationalism." She listed off without a second thought.

Andy clapped her hands together in excitement. "Cool!"

"Why do you know that?" Alec asked.

Before Kathy could reply with 'Because we learned it a week ago' Andy beat her too the punch.

"Because she wants to be a Mary Sue."

Katherine's mouth fell open and she stared at her best friend in disbelief.

"Excuse me?"

"What's a 'Mary Sue'?" Alec asked.

"A clichedly perfect fictional character." Andy explained, adjusting her French Rose pink dress, "Nobody doesn't like her. She has every trait that everyone likes. If she has any flaws, her over all perfection outshines them."

Alec smiled, amusement clear in his eyes, and looked to Katherine, raising an eyebrow.

"Fuck off." She hissed, storming out of her room and down to Rebecca's.

She hated that. Hated when people called her perfect. Fucking fuckers can fuck the hell off. Fuck.

"Beck," She called through the door, "Got any hairspray?"

Fucking assholes. 'Perfect perfect perfect'. God, she fucking hated that.

The door opened a crack, and a bottle of hairspray was thrust out. She grabbed hold of it and the door closed again.

"Perfect perfect perfect." She repeated out loud in a mimicking tone and a scrunched up face. She wasn't fucking perfect. And _everybody _knew that. _Every-_fucking-_body _knew she wasn't perfect and that still called her it. Just to mock her.

Well, fucking sorry she liked knowing shit. Fucking sorry she liked trying to be pretty. Fucking sorry she felt good about herself most of the time. Fucking sorry for being the best she can fucking be. Fucking sorry, you fucking fuck-wads.

Katherine stepped into the common bathroom and up to mirror. The place was littered with her dorm mates prepping and priming. She put a hand over her eyes and started spraying her curls.

"What the hell was that?"

Katherine stopped everything and stormed out of the bathroom- past a pissed Andy- and to Becky's room. She knocked once before leaving the bottle by the door and quickly heading back to her own room. A bang rang through halls as Kathy slammed and locked her door.

She blasted past Alec and to her mirror, picking her mascara off of her desk and trying her damnedest to delicately apply it while nearly shaking with rage.

She sensed Alec closing in on her.

"What was that about?" he asked softly.

"Fucking drop it." she hissed.

He raised his hands and backed away, sitting back down on the bed.

Alec observed her carefully. He smelt Magnolia lilies, expect they were musty. Like rain. She was sad.

He watched her hand quiver and her eyes begin to water. Her nose was getting red and she was snarling slightly, silently muttering to herself. She was truly upset by what Alexandria had said. But why?

"Katherine?" he started again.

She huffed and lowered her mascara brush.

"Please," she whispered, staring at the wall, "Just drop it, Alec."

"I don't want to." He told her firmly.

"Alec," she hissed, grabbing a black clutch purse and walking to the door, "For the love of God, drop it."

"No," he refused, following her, "What the hell is up your ass?"

"I'm fucking pissed," she shouted, throwing her clutch at him, "I've had a long week and I don't wanna fucking go to this stupid fucking dance and now my best friend is fucking pissed at me which will just make the whole fucking thing worse and..." She trailed off, falling against her door and sliding down, wiping away her falling tears.

Alec sat down next to her, wrapping his arms around her while she rested her head on his shoulder.

"Why don't you want to go to your dance?" He asked her quietly, stroking her arm and nuzzling into her brown curls.

She shrugged. "They suck. I just don't like them. All you do is dance- obviously- but I don't like dancing."

He chuckled. "You were dancing when we met."

She rolled her eyes, sniffled, and replied, "I didn't know someone was watching. I don't like dancing _in public_. I feel like everyone's watching me- judging me."

"Do you really think you're _that _important to everyone?" He asked her.

"It doesn't matter if you're important," she fought, standing up and pacing around the small space of her dorm room, "They judge you anyway. It's what we do- judge each other. Every minute of everyday, we are passing off judgement of someone. So, if they're going to judge me, I'd rather be that-girl-who-sat-at-the-table-all-night and not that-ridiculous-idiot-with-no-rhythm. People ignore 'table-girl' whereas they mock 'idiot'. Do you think I could fake a stomach flu and get to stay home?"

He ignored her question and rose, "So sit at the table and mingle with other 'table-people'."

"I don't mingle," she argued, "It's weird and awkward and I don't like it. Usually I stick to Andy, but she's mad at me now, so that won't work."

"So stick to someone else." He offered, trying to convince her to go out. She was thirteen years old and she was acting like a 45 year old divorced mother-of-two. "Just go out and have fun."

"But it won't _be _fun," she retaliated, still pacing, "It'll-"

"Why are you fighting so hard for this?" Alec yelled, grabbing a hold of her arms and turning her to him, "You're young, Katherine. You're thirteen and you have no desire to do _anything. _Except die. That's the only thing you want: to become one of us. And I have no problem with that. What I don't like is that you have nothing right now. _Nothing. _Do you get it? You have two friends in the entire world. You're nearly completely alone and _like _it. Why? Why do you like having no one? Nothing?"

He sighed and pulled her to him, stroking her hair. "Katherine," he murmured quietly, "Do something for me."

"Hm?"

"Stop caring," he told her, "Just for tonight. Stop caring about what people think of you. Dance and mingle. Make new friends, if only for a night. Be like every other teenager in the world- just for one night- and forget about tomorrow."

There was silence for a moment, before...

"Fine." she growled.

Alec smiled. "Thank you."

"Whatever," she responded, pulling away from him and picking her clutch off of the floor. She walked to her door before turning back to him.

"Hey, how the hell did you get in here? No boys are allowed."

He flashed her a wicked smile.

She rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

* * *

"Come on!" Rebecca shouted over the pounding music, trying to tug Katherine onto the dance floor. "Katherine, let's go!"

"No," Katherine shouted back, ripping her arm away, "I don't want to."

"You told Alec you would."

Katherine stopped.

"How do you know about that?"

Becky rolled her eyes. "The wall are thin. Now let's go."

Katherine whimpered and timidly followed Beck to the dance floor, cursing thin walls.

* * *

Three hours later and Katherine hadn't had a ounce of fun. In fact, it was the exact opposite. In her time, dances and school functions in general were the freaking breeding ground for drama. And this time was no different.

_"Hi," Katherine turned around and was met with a pair of stunning blue eyes and a dazzling smile, "I'm Blake."_

_"Katherine," She told him with a smile.  
_

_He smiled back, "Would you like to dance?"  
_

_A blush swept over her cheeks as she furiously shook her head. "Oh, no, no, no, I don't dance." She informed with a shy smile.  
_

_"Oh, come on," he coaxed, "You seemed to be having a good time out there earlier."  
_

_"Oh, no, no, no...me and...dance...and...no, no, no." She gave him an apologetic glance. He wasn't disheartened.  
_

_"Well, alright," He accepted, "We could just go out on the patio and talk for a while."  
_

_Katherine thought for a moment. Beck was out on the floor and Andy still wasn't talking to her, so she was completely alone and completely bored. What the hell could talking hurt?  
_

Katherine's fists and jaw clenched as she recalled what happened an hour after they exited to the patio.

_She was laughing at a funny story Blake had told her about him and his friends and a jet ski when Andy came stomping over._

_"Could you excuse us?" She asked kindly of Blake, before roughly grabbing Katherine's arm and yanking her away into a corner.  
_

_"What the hell is that?" Andy hissed.  
_

_Katherine looked at her, dumbfounded. "Me talking to someone. God forbid. Call in the National Guard."  
_

_Andy glared at her. "Oh, you would just so _fucking _do that, wouldn't you?"_

_"Do what?" Katherine shouted, pissed off at the accusation of her doing anything wrong.  
_

_"I've been hanging out with Blake all night and he really likes me." Andy told her, venom in her words, "But you don't like that, do you? No, you don't like not being the center of attention. So you just had to fucking try and steal him from me, didn't you?"  
_

_Katherine was about to point out that Andy hadn't spoken to her all night, so how the hell was she suppose to know if a guy had caught her attention or not? But Andy continued before she got the chance.  
_

_"God, one fucking lay and you thing you're all that. New flash, bitch, you're not." She barked out a laugh, "God, I can't even fucking imagine why someone as hot as Alec would_ _even_ touch _you. I mean, look at you! Your thighs and ass are huge, you've got hideously bushy eyebrows, your hair's a mess, your face is jacked up, you've got almost no waistline and no tits to make up for it. Honest to God, he probably had his eyes closed the entire fucking time. Better than looking at-__ "  
_

_Katherine- now on the verge of tears- grabbed the top hem of Andy's dress and threw the size three across the small sitting area. She then kicked off her un-Godly uncomfortable shoes and chucked them at the bitch, before storming away.  
_

And now she stomped down the paved road leading back to Volterra, detouring off onto a side road that ran straight to her dorm house.

* * *

The door slammed shut and Katherine immediately made short work of all of her clothing, tearing off her dress and ripping it apart as she ascended the stairs.

Next to go was her strapless bra. She hated that thing. It made her boobs look weird and it was too tight and always irritated her skin where the sticky-gel stuff was...

After her bra were her panties. When she ripped them off, she accidentally scratched herself, drawing blood.

She liked it. She liked the pain, the bleeding. It felt good.

When she was up on the third floor, Katherine quickly went into the bathroom, clawing up and down her sides and thighs.

_Fucking ugly. Fucking gross, hideous, disgusting pieces of shit._

She clawed deeper, catching a glimpse of herself in the mirror.

_Disgusting, _she thought. _Revolting._

She stalked up to the mirror.

_Disgusting. Revolting. Revolting. Disgusting. Gross. Hideous. Disgusting. Gross. Revolting.  
_

Her fist clenched. Then bleed.

She had smashed it into the mirror.

She liked how it felt.

Down the hall and around the corner, Alec lounged on Katherine's bed, reading a copy of _The Da Vinci Code _he had found early. Then, he smelt it.

Katherine. Except, more powerful.

Blood. Katherine's blood.

He bolted out of the room and towards the smell. Opening the door to the common bathroom, Alec was met with a more powerful scent and an even _more _powerful sight.

Katherine was sitting naked on the bathroom floor, scratch marks all over her body and a bloody hand clenching a bloody shard of glass that was cutting into her thigh and leaving a deep, bloody gash.

"Katherine," He gasped, staring horror-stricken at her self-inflicted wounds.

"Ugly." She replied. "Ugly. Ugly. Ugly. Stupid. Gross. Stupid. Ugly. Gross." With each word, the glass would cut a new wound.

Alec dashed over to her, prying the glass from her hand and kissing her cheek.

"Pretty." He told her softly, "Pretty. Beautiful. Gorgeous. Brilliant. Pretty, pretty , pretty."

She didn't respond, just rocked back and forth slightly while staring into space.

Alec tossed the bloody glass aside and rushed to find a First Aid kit. A big house like this was bond to have one.  
Which it did in the kitchen down stairs.

Alec grabbed it from the cabinet and made his way back upstairs, picking up Katherine's discarded clothing on the way.

Once back in the bathroom, Alec quickly went to the sinks, wetting a rag and cleaning the blood of off his Katherine. When she was clean, he made quick work stitching up the deepest cut in her leg (having made sure to numb her leg first, though he doubted she would have noticed anything anyway in her vegetative state) before moving on to the more shallow wounds.

When all was said and done, Alec scooped her up and carried her back to her room. He rummaged through the drawers in her closet before finding an over-sized tee shirt. After he managed to dress the life-sized Barbie doll, he tucked her into bed.

"Pretty." he whispered as he kissed her 'good night'. She made a small grunt of protest before curling into herself and falling right asleep.

Looking down at her, Alec made a decision in that instant. Whomever had the _audacity _to hurt _his _Katherine was going to pay. Dearly.

* * *

Her dream was a strange one. There was no potted Pokemon or flying mermaid dogs in this one. It wasn't fantasy. It was...memory.

It was like a video reel was playing in her mind, showing her clips of her past. She saw herself, her parents, and her friends.

_It was her, Andy and Becky. They were camping and laughing. At least, her and Becky were. Andy's boyfriend- at the time- had told them a joke and they were laughing at it. Then- for no reason- Andy slapped Katherine. Bitch slapped her. They didn't talk for a week. The silence was broken when Katherine invited Andy over to a study party for History._

_It was her and her mother. He mother was cooking something. She was sitting at the counter top, staring at her phone, waiting for Andy to tell her if they were going to the movies or not. "Why do you let her push you around?" her mother had asked. She blew it off, saying she didn't mind because she understood. The text message from Andy came thirty minutes later._

_It was her, Andy and Andy's at-the-time boyfriend, Ricky. She sat on a swing, bundled up for the cold winter night. Andy had texted her early. 'Wanna go for a walk?' They went for walks often, so Katherine replied in the positive. What she didn't know was that this walk was to Ricky's house and the whole reason Andy asked was because she didn't want to walk there alone. Now, Katherine sat by herself while Ricky and Andy canoodled at the other end of the off-limits-at-night playground._

_"Why are you fighting so hard for this?" _Who said that? _"Why do you like having no one? Nothing?"_

Whomever it was was right. She did have no one. She always thought she had Andy, that Andy was something she could count on. But she didn't have Andy. And she didn't have Becky. And she didn't have her mom, or her dad. She had nothing. She had no one.

Katherine awoke with a hiccuped sob and almost immediately felt someone running their fingers through her hair.

She opened her eyes and saw Alec sitting next to her on her bed, his eyes looking down at her gently. His smile was soft- not the daring or flirtatious smirks he had been sending her the past week. No, this one, this whole look, was different. Affectionate.

In that moment in time, Alec cared about her. Like, honestly cared about her. And she didn't mind. She didn't mind someone caring for her. It felt kind of...nice.

He leaned down and kissed her forehead.

"I have a bag of clothes and toiletries packed and ready." he told her lightly, "If you want, we can go to the palace right now."

She smiled weakly and nodded.

He smiled in returned and lifted her into his arms.

_**A/N: I apologize if some of you are a little lost and what more of an idea of what's going on, but that doesn't work. A good story teller doesn't tell their audience everything up front. It'd like a comedian going "By the way, this is the punch line...now onto the joke!"**_

_**Now, it is 1:43 AM and I'm going to bed.  
**_


	7. Seventy Times Seven

_**A/N: I felt that I should give a little more explanation to what happened last chapter, so I've been typing this up all day while watching a 'Snapped' marathon on Oxygen. I hope this clears things up a little bit, or at least is enough to calm some potentially anger readers down (^^; )**_

_**Chapter song: Seventy Time Seven by Brand New  
~I  
~II  
~III**_

"I remember I kept thinking that I knew you never would, and now I know I want to kill you like only a best friend could...Cause you left the frays from the ties you severed, when you say 'best friends' means 'friends forever'."  


_**~IV  
~V  
~VI**  
_

Aro stood over Alec's bed, he and the younger vampire observing the sleeping girl. Alec had brought her here early this morning and laid her down before finding his telepathic master. He wanted to know what drove the young girl to mutilating herself- as did Aro.

Snuggled into the comforter, Katherine was completely oblivious to the two vampires above her; dreaming was proving to be far more interesting, the Pokemon and flying fish dogs making their appearances once again.

In the real world, Aro and Alec spoke.

"I want to know why."

Aro sighed, petting Katherine's soft, brown hair. He had seen what Alec had, as well as the girl's previous troubles with suicide. He knew the dangers she posed to herself.

He also knew the feelings Alec had towards her. Marcus had shown him the one-sided connection early in the week. It wasn't as deep rooted as love, but it very easily could develop into such. Alec cared about Katherine. Alec hardly gave any person the time of day, but he truly cared for Katherine. Almost as much as he did for Jane. It was heart-warming.

Now, however, it posed a problem. Aro knew what Alec wanted to do, and he couldn't let that happen. It would be too much of a threat to their secrecy.

"I know you do, Alec," Aro stated softly, still focused on the sleeping girl, "But I can not tell you. I'm sorry."

Alec remained silent.

"She will be alright, Alec," The older vampire told him, making to leave the room, "In time, she will heal entirely. And she is going to have all of the time in world soon enough."

* * *

Katherine stood in the bathroom, staring at herself in the mirror.

She had dressed in the black, cotton shorts and red tee shirt that Alec had packed for her. Though it was nearly winter and the Volturi- being vampires- had no need for a heating unit in the manor, she understood the need for the shorts and flowy shirt. There were raw scratch marks all on her abdomen and moderate/severe injuries on her thighs. Tight, covering clothing would not be good.

In the mirror, she judged herself. Not as violently as she had the night before. No, now she was trying to convince herself that Andy- _Alexandria-_ was wrong.

"My face isn't messed up," she muttered to herself in a child-like softness. "My eyes are kind of pretty. A-and I have a waistline." Her voice was catching with with the tears that were building in her 'kind of pretty' eyes as she continued to try to restore her self-esteem. "It's not a tiny one, but it's kind of there. And a C-cup is alright. I mean, it's...not _huge, _but..."

"You're fine."

Katherine turned to see who was in the bedroom, and, through watery eyes, saw Jane sitting on her brother's bed. The light-brunette looked bored, but not vicious. She looked Katherine up and down before returning back to her boredom, letting her hair down from its up-do and toying with it.

"I never like that Amy chick." The small blood-drinker stated offhandedly.

Katherine thought for a moment of who the hell 'Amy' was before it clicked. Did Jane know about what happened at the dance?

"Andy?" She asked carefully.

Jane rolled her eyes. "Like I care. Either way, she always struck me as a bitch- gave me a bad feeling."

Katherine got that. Turns out Jane's 'feeling' was right. "She told me about how she demanded you take her to the Masters. Knowing you now, I'm kind of surprised you didn't do your little 'Pain' thing to her."

"A silly little human like her? Not worth the energy." She blew off, braiding some of her hair.

Silence filled the room like smoke in a 1950s piano bar while Katherine reviewed Jane's words. One thing caught her. Jane had made her comment about "Amy" after giving a passing examination of her wounds. Katherine thought of whether or not she told anyone that it was Andy's words that led her to the self violence. She was certain that she hadn't.

"How do you know that Andy was a part of this?" Katherine asked timidly, still looking at herself in the mirror.

"Aro," she heard Jane reply, "He has a weak spot for me. I had to swear not to tell Alec, though."

The bed creaked as Jane shifted, sitting cross-legged as she looked directly at the human girl.

"Katherine," she started softly, "You can't listen to her. You're beautiful- way prettier than her. She's stupid and doesn't know what she's talking about. Trust me- I've been around far longer than either of you. Your beauty is timeless. Her look will die out in a decade."

Though she liked the words, Katie was confused by them.

"Why are you being nice to me?"

Jane sighed sightly, looking down. "I want my brother to happy," she shared through clenched teeth and with a pained tone, "And you have the power to do that. At this moment, because you're hurt, he's not happy. As soon as _you _get better, _he _gets better."

She made her way to the bedroom doorway before turning back and looking Katherine in the eyes. "Listen," she started, "You need to forget her. I know she was your best friend but- hell- you would of had to do it anyway."

* * *

"Hey."

Becky shook Andy awake, the latter being dead-asleep in her wrinkled dress. Andy had made a gurgled noise of protest before rolling over, her back to the red-head.

"Andy," she called firmly, grabbing the blonde's shoulders and throwing her onto the ground.

"The fuck!"

Becky ignored the angered shout. "Where's Katie?"

"What?"

"Where's. Katie?" Becky questioned again, her hands on her hips and her sleeping red hair falling around her face.

"Like I care." Andy muttered, standing up and rubbing her eyes and walking past the other girl.

Becky stood in the room alone, stunned by the response. "The hell does that mean?" she shouted down the hall, running after her friend.

"It means that I don't care where that desperate wanna be is." Andy told her simply once Becky had caught up.

Becky was stunned still once more. Where the hell was this coming from?

She jogged down the stairs and to the kitchen, where Andy, some other girls and the RA- Jessica- all ate breakfast.

"What do you mean 'desperate wanna be'? What happened last night?"

Andy threw her cream cheese bagel onto her plate in frustration and looked Rebecca dead in the eyes.

"I mean that Katherine Jensen is a pathetic slut."

Silence.

The entire room- dead silent. It was widely known that Andy loved Katherine, that they were closer than family.

Jessica looked to Rebecca for an explanation.

But Beck gave none. She hadn't even noticed the look. She was too focused to the...the _bitch _that had just insulted her friend. Sure, Becky and Kathy weren't insanely close, but they were still friends.

And this bitch just called her friend a slut.

In quick motion, Rebecca stalked to the blonde and back-handed her. When Alexandria tried to retaliate, Rebecca caught both of her wrists, and looked at Jessica.

"I make a motion to have Alexandria Benton evicted from this house."

* * *

Katherine sat in an annoyingly creaky chair in one of the game rooms- the one Felix and Demetri were currently in. The two men were at a pool table across the room, conversing with Katherine as they played.

"So she called you fat?" Demetri asked, eyes judging the position of the white ball.

"Yup." She confirmed, flipping through a magazine she snatched off of the secretary's desk. It was in Italian, so she didn't understand the articles, but the pictures were cool.

"Aw heeeeell no," Felix commented in a mockingly ghetto-girl voice. Katherine laughed when Demetri threw one of the ivory orbs (obtained pre- 20th century) at Felix's head.

"And you hacked yourself up because of it?" Demetri questioned, lining up his cue stick with the cue ball.

"Yup." She confirmed, observing a brilliantly lit and coordinated photograph on the glossy paper.

"A profoundly tactical handling of the situation." Jane commented as she and Alec entered the room, heading straight to the chess board set up parallel to the pool table.

"Tactical warfare is just one of my many talents." Katherine joked easily.

"Is shattering a mirror with your fist another?" Alec asked smoothly, sending her a goading smile.

Katherine took the jesting bait and stuck her tongue out at him, flipping him the bird with her bandaged hand.

He chuckled, sitting at the table across from his sister and focusing on the game.

Ten minutes later, Katherine had flipped through the magazine and was completely bored.

With nothing better to do, she decided to train her telekinesis a little bit. And screw with Alec. A little bit.

She focused her eyes on the collar of his gray dress shirt, feeling her pupils dilate. Her mind centered on her desire, one word pulsing through her head.

_Tug. Tug. Tug._

Slowly and ever-so-slightly, his collar twitched. He hadn't noticed.

She smiled and re-focused.

_Tug. Tug. Tug._

Nothing. Damn.

Katherine frowned, huffed, and sat up straight in the creaky chair.

She focused on his collar once more, her eyebrow and the corner of her mouth twitching. Her shoulders tensed and her jaw clenched.

_Tug. Tug. Tug._

_Tug. Tug, tug, tug.  
_

_TUG.  
_

Suddenly, an invisible force yanked Alec by his collar, tossing him onto the floor.

Jane and Demetri gasped while Felix boomed with laughter.

Alec, disheveled, looked up at Katherine, who was smiling innocently.

He smirked, grabbed a chess piece off of the table and threw it at the gifted human.

Katherine's smile fell and her face went blank as her eyes followed the chess piece flying towards her. Her pupils constricted, centering all attention on the little wooden specimen coming at her.

Inches from her face, the piece stopped, floating in mid air.

Alec stood with a smile and sauntered over to the frozen girl. He nabbed the chess piece out of the air and kissed her forehead.

"Nice job, Kitty." He congratulated readily, returning to the chess board.

Katherine snapped out of her haze and furiously scrubbed away at where Alec had kissed her.

Felix laughed.

* * *

Rebecca sat with Jessica and Amelia- a girl who occupied the room next to Katherine's and would sometimes hang out with Katie, Beck and Andy.

"Before this morning, have either of you noticed any troubles between Katherine and Alexandria?" Jessica asked the teenage girls, her Italian accent heavily influencing her perfected English.

Amelia was the first to speak. "Not really. I mean, they would fight, yeah, but who doesn't fight with their friends?"

Jessica nodded and took notes in a small notebook. "How often did they fight?"

"Not very," Rebecca told her, "But that's pretty much because Katherine avoided the fights."

"Why?" Jessica asked, "I've never seen Katherine shy away from a fight with anyone. Myself included."

"She doesn't have a lot of friends, " Becky said, "She's very shy- although she hides it well. She doesn't trust people. I think that, after what Krysten and Abbey did to her, she's desperate to have any close friend."

"Who?" Jessica asked.

Rebecca clarified, "Friends from the States. She went to elementary school with them and they were like sisters. Then, one day, Krysten called her and said 'Abbey and I were thinking, and...we don't want to be your friends anymore. You're mean...bye.' It destroyed her."

Jessica nodded and wrote something down.

"So she avoided fighting with Andy. But the fights that did happen, who instigated them?"

"Andy," Amelia answered immediately, "It was like she was fighting with her mom. Katherine would be like: 'Hey, it's late, we should go home' and Andy would just be like: 'Fuck no. Shut up, you're not my mom'. It was ridiculous. That's why I don't hang around them more, Andy always irked me."

Jessica nodded again and continued to write.

"Did anything happen last night?"

The girls looked at each other and shrugged.

"I think there was a boy," Beck informed, "I know that Andy has some...like, abrasions on her shoulder and her hands. Like when you fall on the side walk."

Jessica nodded once more before sighing, "All right girls, you are dismissed. And please tell Andy to come see me."

The girls nodded and exited the dinning room while Jessica sunk into her seat.

She knew Alexandria had troubles at home. Her parents had divorced the year before and neither her mother nor father handled the way one would hope adults would. A thirteen year old Alexandria was put in the middle, delivering crude messages to and fro and being tugged back and forth in a ridiculous amount of custody hearings. Needless to say, all respect for adult figures was lost.

Then she met Katherine. Katherine was an adult in a girl's body. What had Shakespeare said? "I never knew so young a body with so old a head"? Katherine seemed to be exactly what Andy needed. A stable, mothering figure, the sister she never had and the best friend every girl needs. Jessica had thought that, maybe, this would be good for Alexandria.

_I guess I was wrong._

Jessica sighed and sat up as she heard Andy descend the stairs.

* * *

"Perfection." Felix stated, praising Katherine's billiards shot.

"I know right?" She agreed with a wide smile and a laugh.

Upon hearing this, Alec paused his game with his sister and looking at Katherine. She noticed this.

"What?"

"Last night," He started, "When Alexandria called you perfect-"

She held up her hand and he paused.

"I'm going to stop you right there," She told him, "Felix called my move perfect, not me. And besides, she didn't mean it. She was making fun of me. Which she knows I hate. Had it been _you, _I'd have given you leeway, because you wouldn't have known any better. But she does. She knows as well as anyone that I _despise _being called "Perfect"." She made sure to exaggerate the sarcasm of the word.

"Seriously," she continued to rant, "It's just _rude_. I mean, it's not like you walk up to a homeless guy and say 'Oh, you're doing good for yourself, aren't ya? Yeah, you got that Swiss bank account? You got your Armani on? Yeah, everything's working out for you, isn't it?'. No, you don't do that because it's messed up and just plain mean. Just like it is for mocking someone because they got an A on their test or because they actually looked _nice _in a family photo and was happy about it."

There was silence.

"O...kay," Felix started, watching a fuming Katherine closely, "I'm sensing some deep-rooted psychological issues here...anyone want to change the subject?"

"Do you like Red Velvet Cake?" Demetri offered, looking at the only person in the room capable of eating it.

Her eyes rolled in delight and she fell against the pool table, "Oh my God, yes!"

He chuckled, "Well, I hear there's this new Red Velvet Cake ice cream or something..."

Her eyes widened.

"Mother of Jesus..." she looked at Alec, who seemed to be holding back laughter, "Did you bring my wallet by any chance?"

"No." He chuckled.

"Okay," she said, righting herself and walking to the door, "Well, I'm going to my house, getting my wallet and buying that ice cream. Oh my God, the ice cream and some Red Velvet cupcakes...oh...Okay, I got to go, I'll see you guys later." She waved goodbye before going to grab the bag Alec had brought.

The four vampires were quiet for a moment before all began chuckling to themselves at the silly human's antics and returning to their individual activities.


	8. Under Pressure

**A/N:**_** Sorry for the wait. I had a little bit of writer's block. I guess you could consider this a filler chapter, because no major plot advancement takes place- it's only set up.**_

_**You'll need to know these:**_

Bee's Knees - An extraordinary person, thing, idea

Big Cheese - The most important or influential person. Same as big shot

Bluenose - An excessively puritanical person, a prude

Bump Off - To murder

Carry a Torch - To have a crush on someone

Fall Guy/Gal - victim of a frame

Gams - A woman's legs

Giggle Water - An intoxicating beverage; alcohol

Heebie-Jeebies - The jitters

Lounge Lizard - a guy that is sexually active

Moll - A gangster's girl

Neck - Kissing with passion

Pigs- Police

Pinch - To arrest

Scram - Ask someone to leave immediately

Sheba - A woman with sex appeal (from the movie Queen of Sheba)

UnerTorpedo - A hired gun

_**HunterRaven and Stargazer: Again, incredible thanks to the both of you for being my only two reviewers for chapters 6 and 7. Your guys' reviews always make me smile and just brighten up my day a little bit when I see the notifications on my email :)**_

_**And to anyone reading and not reviewing: I hope you're enjoying the story, and I really hope that if you're not enjoying it, you're not just sitting behind your computer screen cursing me. The only way I'll know if you don't like the story or not is if you tell me. Plain and simple.  
**_

_**~8~  
**_

_**Chapter Song: Under Pressure by Queen ft David Bowie**_**  
_~I  
~II  
~III_**_**  
**_

_"Under pressure- that burns a building down, splits a family in two, puts people on the street..."  
_

_**~IV  
~V  
~VI**  
_

Katherine sat at her desk, mind wandering to and fro- going anywhere to avoid homework, if for only a short amount of time.

She had to do her homework. She simply _had _to, it wasn't an option. If you miss one assignment, you miss another and then another and then your grade drops for no good reason. And if that happens, her parents will skin her ass. She had to get good grades- she was only allowed _one _B a semester. And if she got a C on a progress report...God be with her.

Her parents had never hit her, though they had bruised her arms and ribs when she was younger and they would grab and shake her. She remembered one time specifically- she remembered the colors and lighting- and she remembered that it was _that_ moment she had lost respect for her father as a human being. Any 6'4", 230 lbs man that has to hurt a seven year old girl was a sad, sad person.

However sad, though, he was big. And he was scary. And he would kill er if her grades slipped. So she had to do her homework.

She had avoided doing it when she was with the Volturi and she had used dinner as an excuse when she came back to the dorm, but now...now she was stuck. She had to do it. Missing assignments is silly. There is no reason to, seeing as there is nothing else to occupy her time.

_Except..._she thought with a wicked smile, slowly closing her text book, _practicing my skill..._

Bright eyed and giddy with the excitement of _not _having to fill out a worksheet on Chapter 13 of the History of International Affairs and Relations- Volume VII: 20th Century to Modern Times, Katherine bounced in her chair as she pushed the book aside and placed her pencil in the middle of desk.

With great care, Katherine braced her forearms on the desk and focused on the brown, wooden writing utensil.

She could feel her temples pulsing and lip twitching slightly as she lost more control. Slowly- ever so slowly- conscious decision was slipping away from her. Power was taking over, the power had a mind of its own. She wasn't sure what she wanted the pencil to do, just to do something.

The further away she slipped, the more the pencil started moving. At first, it wobbled back and forth- as though someone with a nervous habit was tapping it on the desk. Then, gradually, both ends starting lifting up.

Witnessing the sight on her achievement- continuous control- Katherine broke into a smile. She refocused her mind on keeping the pencil up, trying to see just how long she could maintain a stable flow of energy.

"Hey."

The pencil whacked her in the face.

Rebecca entered the room and leaned against the far wall.

"Hi," Katherine greeted with a small smile, picking her pencil out of her lap and placing it back on the desk, "What's up?"

"Nothing," Beck pouted, lying down on Katie's bed, "Bored. Decided to bug you. How was your time with the religious folk?" She joked.

When Katherine had returned to the dorm that Saturday, after vanishing from her room while everyone was asleep, Jessica had some questions.

Katherine had told her that she had woken up early and couldn't go back to sleep, so she visited some friends from in-town. They were also up early because they were extremely religious and avid church goers. Jessica accepted this easily, but Rebecca knew it was bologna. She didn't know _why _it was bologna, but she had the feeling that what ever these things were that staked their claim in Katherine, they were far from "holy".

However, Katherine seemed perfectly at ease with everything about them, so Becky figured she shouldn't fret. Kathy was a big girl, she could take care of herself.

"It was fine," she shrugged, opening her book back up, "Nothing horribly fascinating happened. And even if I did, I couldn't tell you."

"Are these guys the Mafia or something?" Rebecca asked, tossing a tennis ball she had found (one that Katherine used to practice and generally play with when she couldn't sleep) up in the air.

"The Mafia originated in Sicily- that's about thirteen hours south of here. I doubt they're the Mafia," Katherine laughed, scanning through the text in her book for the answer to question eight out of twelve.

"People move," She pointed out, "We're military brats, we know that better than anyone."

"Valid," Katherine noted, "But in the cases of deep-seeded organized crime, the bosses usually like to stay where they are, it's like the comfort zone. Serial killers have one, so do organized crime rings."

"Maybe these guys are a branch," Becky thought out loud, getting up and pacing in Katherine's room, tossing the tennis ball from one hand to the other. "Maybe they're ambassadors of some sort- the Mafia's attempts at expanding their reach," she seemed to be developing a 1920s Boston news reporter accent at this point, "I'm tellin' ya, Johnny, somethin' don't smell right, here. It's a lil bit fishy, that's what it is. Why, this whole thing reeks more than a pig's play-pin in the middle of July. There's a story here, Johnny, I can feel it. I can feel it in my bone."

"Uh-huh," Katherine smiled, still trying to do her homework.

"I'm tellin' ya, Johnny, this whole damned thing reeks o' trouble. I never did like that Big- Cheese, Aro guy. He always gave me the heebie-jeebies. Crossed me as the type to have a lil black book of torpedoes by his side."

"Torpedoes?" Katherine inquired with a laugh.

"Assassins, hit-men, hired guns, get with the times, Johnny!" Rebecca scolded.

"Sorry, Boss," Katherine apologized, playing along with Beck's little act.

"And I'll tell ya somethin' else here, Johnny," Rebecca continued, "I don't want you necking with that Alec no more, ya hear? Don't need no moll running around. Get in tight with that lounge lizard and next thing ya know *BAM* you're the fall gal for these guys and a bump-off gone wrong and the pigs'll pinch ya in an hour. Why, I can't stand to think what'll happen to a Sheba like you with gams like those in prison."

"Alright, Boss," Katherine waved off, turning back to her homework, "I got a deadline to make, so scram."

"I'm serious now, Johnny," She argued as Katherine stood up at started pushing her out of the room, "I don't want you carrying no torch for this boy now, ya hear? I don't care if he is just the bee- knees."

Becky stumbled out of the doorway while the door that inhabited it slammed shut. She smiled and started to walk away when she heard Katherine shout from the other side, "Go get some giggle-water, ya bluenose!"

* * *

"It was strange, I'll give you that. However, it made me laugh, and beggars can't be choosers." Katherine explained as she circled around the pool table.

"You've been talking about Rebecca a lot," Felix noticed, "What about that Andy girl?"

Katherine waved off the inquiry. "She moved. Army brats- it happens."

In reality, Alexandria had been removed from their house and transferred to another one. Katherine couldn't say she was upset by it. Over the past week, she'd gone from self-loathing to hurt to pissed at Alexandria and finally, indifferent. She didn't care about Alexandria anymore, didn't care about what she had said. Alexandria was small, pitiful, and Katherine was above such trivial aspects of life. She wouldn't bother herself with worrying over someone as sad as to pick apart another person- a friend- just because said person felt inadequate.

"Just out of the blue?"

"Yup." Katherine confirmed with a shrug, "It happens."

Felix shrugged and accepted the explanation.

Katherine felt relief wash over her as she lowered herself to eye-level with the billiard table, scrutinizing the cue ball. She was never very good at billiard balls- a broken window and dented wall in a hotel game room could attest to that.

"No, no, no." Demetri scolded Katherine's technique (if you could call it that), coming up behind her and placed his hands on her- one on her high elbow and another on her far wrist. "Lower your elbow and wrist. You want to try for a top-spin. Keep the tip of the cue slightly above the center line of the ball, with the cue itself elevating gradually."

With Demetri nearly flush with her back, Katherine adjusted her cue and carefully struck the ball.

A growl rolled through the room and the cue ball went flying.

Demetri and Katherine stood and turned to the door. Alec and Jane were standing in the doorway, and Alec looked mad. Demetri's hands shot up and he backed away from Katherine.

"Alec, calm down..."

Alec did not calm down. No, he growled again- louder. He started snarling and stalking towards Demetri, who was backing away slowly.

Felix stood at ready, set to break up any fight that may break out. Jane looked at her bother incredulously, shocked that he would react so irrationally as to threaten his friend. Katherine didn't know what the hell was going on, but she assumed it wouldn't end well for Demetri.

Jane caught on to that as well, and she didn't like it. She did not like someone threatening Demetri, whether or not it was her twin brother.

Thought left her as she stared at the back of her brother. She could see every vein in his body. She could see the venom running through them. In her mind, she could see the venom start boiling and expanding- pressing against the walls of the vessels.

Suddenly, Alec screams echoed through the room, and Jane pulled back.

Alec whipped around and snarled before poncing towards his sister.

Demetri and Felix snapped into action. Demetri was going to grab Jane while Felix made his way to Alec, ready to restrain him as best he could.

Before anyone could touch another, however, the boys all flew back, colliding with different objects. Jane stood stone still, staring at Katherine.

The human girl looked possessed. Her normally brown eyes were stark white and pink lips were paled and dry. Her body stood tense and motionless- an impossible feat for a human.

Then...she snapped out of it.

The color returned to her eyes and lips and her shoulders sagged as she took a few shaky breaths, trying to regain her composure. Once composed, she walked over to Alec- who was now standing and brushing himself off- and shoved him with all her might. While he didn't budge, she did get his attention.

A long finger with a perfectly manicured nail pointed to the far corner.

"Corner." She growled menacingly.

He didn't move.

Her anger spiked and she all but roared.

"Now!"

Alec jumped slightly when he saw her eyes flash white.

"Alec," Jane called to him softly, but sternly. "Come."

Still staring at a fuming Katherine, Alec walked to his sister and they both exited the room.

Once they were gone, Katherine's ass met the floor.

"You alright?" Felix asked as he reset the billiard balls.

"Yeah," she breathed out, raking her hands through her loose curls, "Just a little wiped. What the hell was his problem?"

"He doesn't like other kids touching his toys." Felix explained, making Demetri laugh.

"I'm his toy?" She asked, nearly hissed.

"Yup." Demetri told her, grabbing a cue, "He had staked his claim before we even met you."

"Well then."

"Don't take it too personally," Felix told her, "It's not like he sees as an object or whatever you women freak out about nowadays. He's just really protective and territorial. You should of seen what he did to Demetri when the guy started courting Jane."

Katherine's eyes lit up as she shot her glance to other vampire in the room. "You and Jane?"

He rolled his eyes and smiled, "I wish."

Katherine giggled with delight and stood up, walking over to the pool table. "Adorable," she noted, "Is Jane totally against this then?"

Demetri smiled, "I'm wearing her down."

She smiled at him again as Felix broke the set of billiard balls.

* * *

"Halloween's tomorrow."

Katherine looked up at the doorway. She had made her way into Alec's bedroom as her vamps fed. It was further from their dining hall than the game room and really the only other room she knew well.

After he had finished feeding, he had followed her scent and went straight to his own room. He liked that she sought refuge in his space.

"Yes it is." She confirmed with a nod, urging him to continue onward to his point.

"Are you and your friends doing anything?" He asked, walking towards where she sat on the edge of his bed.

"No," she told him, "I have three tests on Monday, I can't risk doing anything."

He sat down next her, "Why are you so concerned with your grades? I mean, it's not like your future depends on them anymore."

She sighed and fell backward onto to the bed, "Because I have to see my parents in twenty days. The last thing I want with _that_ meeting is my dad giving me shit for my grades."

Alec nodded and an awkward silence fell over them. Katherine didn't seem to be to disturbed by it, but it was gnawing at Alec. He didn't want there to be awkwardness between them, and he didn't want to be the cause of it. She was still upset with him over what happened in the game room yesterday, he didn't have to be a genius to figure that out. He wanted to apologize- because he really was sorry he had lost his control- but he couldn't do that without explaining everything to Katherine. No, she wouldn't let him slide by with a half-assed answer. And if he _did_ explain everything, his desire to hold her, his need to protect, she of all people would probably get scared and pull further away from him.

"So, uh," He started, breaking the silence, "Why are you off early today?"

"Halloween." She laughed, "The high school kids have a Halloween bash every Halloween weekend to raise money for Winter Formal. Everyone past elementary school is released at noon so we can volunteer and help set up."

"You're not volunteering?"

"No, I am." She told him, "Just in a different way. Some of the girls and myself are baking treats to sell at the booths. We're just going to wait until late tonight to do it."

"Why?"

"Because everything is more fun when you do it at midnight." She smiled wickedly.

He smirked down at her, "I'll keep that in mind."

She raised and crawled over to him, her face mere inches from his own and her scent engulfing him.

"It might just serve you well." She whispered in a low, sultry voice. His eyes hooded and his only response was tempted smirk.

Katherine winked at him and sashayed out of the room.

* * *

_**2nd A/N: The text book doesn't exist, by the way. At least, not to my knowledge...  
**_


	9. This is Halloween

_**A/N: I actually had this chapter done yesterday, but right when I went to do the final 'save' my entire network crashed. No Wi-Fi, no television, no home phone. I had to call my mom on my cell so she could use her computer at work to log into the Chat help desk- which I couldn't do , because we had no internet- and then spent a hour talking to "Glenn" through my mother. And then I get a call from the AT&T robot a half hour ago saying it was a network failure in our neighborhood and our fix-it guy has been canceled because everything should be back online and I'm just like...'So I'm up at 8 AM for no reason now?'**_

_**But, the whole experience did have a plus side: I've realized what spoiled brats we all are. 'Oh no! No TV signal or internet! Whatever shall we do?'. It was a sad time.  
**_

_**Anyway!  
**_

_**Stargazer: **Actually, when you think about it, the topic is pretty broad lol it's not just one country's foreign policy, but every major country interacting with other major countries and some minor countries and why every country did what they did when they did it and how it affected other countries in the world...but, I'm a History and Poli-Sci nerd, so...yeah...lol And yes, Alec is rather possessive. I feel like he's already if-y around Demetri, because the guy is after his sister and all. And one must also take into consideration that Alec may have been upset at not only Demetri playing with his toy, but forgetting about his sister as well. I don't know, I'm not a thirteen year old boy.**  
**_

_**HunterRaven: **Yes, I know your life story. In fact...I'M THE ONE WRITING IT! Boom! Twist!  
But no, I really have no idea who you are lol I love that you can connect to Katherine, you and Stargazer. That means the character is good. Also, I have no idea about Alec and Demetri. Characters tend to have minds of their own. I guess we'll find out in later chapters... And the 'corner' thing will probably be explained in the next chapter, or the chapter after it. Whichever chapter has Thanksgiving in it lol**  
**_

_**Chapter Song: This is Halloween from The Nightmare Before Christmas**  
_

_**~I  
~II  
~III  
**_

_"This is Halloween, everyone scream!"  
_

_**~IV  
~V  
~VI**  
_

"Boys and girls of every age-"

"Wouldn't you like to see something strange?"

"Come with us and you will see,"

"This- our town of Halloween."

All of the girls joined in for the chorus.

"This is Halloween, this is Halloween. Pumpkins scream in the dead of night. This is Halloween, everybody make a scene. Trick or treat till the neighbors gonna die of fright."

"It's our town," Katherine sang as she danced down the crowded hallway, "everybody scream."

"In this town of Halloween," three girls from inside the bathroom sang.

Katherine giggled as she made her way to Amelia's room. The younger girl stepped out of her door as Katherine was walking.

"Oh my God," Katie smiled, "You look adorable."

Amelia smiled brightly and fiddled with her yellow skirt. "Ya think so?"

Katherine looked the girl over. A knee length, yellow, pleated skirt with white, frilly socks that reached just bellow her knees teamed up with a deep blue, short sleeved button-up and a black bob wig. She had a few tennis bracelets on either wrist that were made up of faux rubies and diamonds and a red bow-clip in the black hair.

"Perfection," Katherine told her, "Just like Snow White. Now go do your make up."

"Right." The twelve year old nodded seriously, scurrying off to the bathroom.

Katherine smiled and started humming along with all of the girls' singing and she jogged down the stairs.

"In this town we call home, everyone hail to the pumpkin song." she sang lowly to herself as she bounced down the last flight and into the common room.

"Hey Little Red!" Beck greeted from the couch, her painted on whiskers cracking slightly as she smiled.

""Sup Kitty? You're looking fierce."

"Meow." She replied, turning her fake and pointy , tiger painted nails into a claw. "You like what I did with the horrible orange hoodie Alexandria got me for my birthday?" She asked, standing up and flaunting the focal point of her costume. "I sewed the strips on myself."

"It's fantastic," Katherine chuckled, looking her friend up and down. Tiger ears, nails and face paint with a tiger stripped jacket, black skinny jeans and orange Converses. Simple and cheap, but fabulous none-the-less.

"I see you went with my idea of using your red cape thingy."

"Yeah," Katherine said, "I just really didn't want to have to put together a whole costume from scratch and I'm pretty sure the capelet speaks for itself. Besides, I found my old Brownie's skirt. I let out the waist a little a bit and it was perfect."

"Don't you just love Home Ec?" Rebecca said wishfully, batting her eyelashes.

Katherine laughed. "It _does _come in handy."

"I couldn't agree with you more." A heavy Scottish accent acceded from the kitchen. Rebecca and Katherine turned to see thirteen year old Flora McCarty standing in all of her Scottish glory.

She wore a Royal Stewart tartan, strapless dress with a sweet-heart neckline. The dress had an empire waist extenuated with a thick, black belt and slight gold embellishing at the hems with a mid-thigh length, rounded skirt with black petticoat underneath. She wore black lace, fingerless driving gloves and a masquerade mask of the same fabric and embellishment as the dress with gold feathers framing the left side of her pale face. Tight tendrils of bright orange curls fell from her up-do to frame her face. She was gorgeous.

"Wow."

"You made that yourself?" Katherine asked in astonishment while Becky just stared.

"Yup." Flora smiled, "Didn't do half bad, did I?"

"Oh my God," Rebecca yelled with a smile, "Are you kidding me? You look freaking incredible! You're like a little Scottish princess! You just need a black Scott terrier and you'll be complete!"

"I'm _not_ carrying around a dog all night," Flora told her, "Not a chance in a brimstoney hell."

"They're here!" Someone yelled from upstairs. Sure enough, headlights began to shine through the front windows as the high schoolers (older siblings of some of the girls) traveled up the drive.

Flora and Becky grabbed their purses from the counter top and Katherine slipped her phone and wallet into her pocket.

* * *

"I'm going to sound really gay when I say this, but...I _love _your shoes."

Katherine giggled like a manic and bounced happily. "I _know _right! I just bought them. High-heeled combat booties. Aren't they just awesome?"

Adam and Becky smiled at their friend while Kyle shook his head.

"Dude, you are such a fa-"

"-Ntastic friend?" Rebecca finished, driving the fifteen year old bass player away from the derogatory term she knew he was going to use.

Kyle smiled and adjusted the nob in his neck, "Sure."

"Alright, Frankenstein, _you_ make conversation." Adam- dressed as a mad scientist- demanded of his friend.

"Technically, you'd be Frankenstein, and he'd be your monster. Often called 'daemon' or demon by the doctor." Katherine corrected easily. "But...you don't care..."

"Not at all," Kyle laughed, "Anyway, let's go get food, I'm hungry."

"Oh! Caramel apples!" Beck shouted, clapping happily.

"No!" The guys screamed as the girls began towards the stand.

"Why?" Katie asked.

Adam looked down, embarrassed, and Kyle smile mischievously. "Some of the guys replaced half of the apples with onions."

Rebecca cringed and Katherine laughed.

"Oh, ew."

"That's great."

"I know right!" Kyle bellowed, smiling happily at a laughing Katherine.

"Okay, well, avoiding the apples, what do you want to eat, Kyle?" Beck asked.

"Candy corn?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't eat plastic!"

"Bleh!" He shouted in retaliation, sticking his tongue out at her.

She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, "How did you get into high school?"

"Pity."

"I'm sure."

Adam and Katherine looked at each other.

"Want to go check out the food?" Adam asked.

"Yes, dear sir, I would." She smiled.

* * *

"Werewolf claws? What are they?"

"Chicken strips." Katherine laughed, "They're just cut different so they actually look like claws."

Adam smiled, "That's cool. Where did you get that idea?"

He watched her face as Katie's mind drifted off. A little, impish smile graced her full lips and a twinkle lit her brown eyes. Adam smiled as he watched her.

"Nowhere," She told him with a playful smile, "It just kind of came to me."

He smiled at her lightheartedness. "So...did you girls make all of this?"

"Oh, no," She laughed, shaking her head, "We made the werewolf claws, hotdog mummies and the graveyard gravel stones."

"Oh," He smiled, "That's cool."

She smiled and nodded as the conversation died. Awkwardly, the two stood, shifting around and trying to think of a way to successfully break the silence. Neither of their thoughts were fruitful.

"Let's go see what Kyle and Becky and up to." Katherine suggested timidly, to which Adam hurriedly agreed.

In the distance, Alec smiled. Felix scoffed at him.

Often times, Aro sent one or two guard members to watch over large gatherings. They wouldn't want a nomad to cause a disturbance in the festivities- which happened more often than one may be inclined to think.

Alec had specifically asked to go because he wanted to keep an eye on Katherine. And for good reason, apparently. A boy in a tattered lab coated and messy hair kept showing signs of interest in her. That did not sit well with him.

Much to his pleasure, though, his Little Red didn't seem to return the interest. In fact, she seemed rather pleased to no longer be alone with him. Good. Maybe the kid will get the hint.

* * *

"I swear to God, we are going to die in here."

"That's dramatic," Katherine noted offhandedly as she wandered through corn maze. She was quiet impressed with what the high schoolers had done with the maze. The corn maze led off into the forest, where some of the kids had been spending a few weeks prepping. Different paths had been made and marked and once you were out of the corn maze, you were in the forest one. She reckoned it was going to be delightful. If they ever got out, that is.

And if Rebecca ever stopped talking.

"This is a dramatic situation! And I don't wanna do the forest part, can we not do the forest part, please?"

Katherine scoffed and turned to the fidgeting tiger. "Can we at least _get _to the forest part?"

Becky whimpered, but followed Katherine anyway.

After a few more turns and dead-ends, they had finally reached part two.

The girls gazed into the dark, foggy forest with it's gloomy trees and ominous essence.

Katherine smiled. Beck cowered. Katherine made a move to go into the forest and Rebecca grabbed her hand.

"Kathy, I don't wanna do this."

She laughed, "Becky, it's all fake, you know that, right? This is all set up by the high school kids, none of it is real. We're not _really _walking into a foreboding forest were a slasher movie maniac is waiting to get us. This isn't reality. It'll be fine."

Rebecca whimpered but once again, followed her friend.

Alec watched the two walk into the forest. He looked to Felix, who nodded, and followed them.

* * *

Katherine hopped over a small branch, the tread on her new booties leaving a distinctive print in the mud. She wandered through the forest alone, Rebecca- having gotten scared- turned back a few minutes ago. Be this a horror movie, Katherine would've been freaked out. After all, it is always after people split up that the psycho killer starts the mayhem.

But, this wasn't a movie. This wasn't fiction and there was no monster in the woods waiting to avenge his sister's death or whatever.

"Ah!" She jumped and shrieked when something flew past her face. It was too late for a generic bird and too small for an owl. Was it a bat? Are there bats in Italy?

Out of the corner of her eye, a shadow darted through the forest. She jumped once more, before laughing at her own silliness. Her mind had automatically shot to ideas of demons and ghosts before she righted herself. That was silly. Even if they did exist (which she assumed they did), why would they be after her? She hadn't tempered with the delicate matters of the line between life and death at this point, so she shouldn't have any aggravated souls after her.

With another chuckle, she stuck her cold hands in her capelet pockets and continued onward, searching the trees for small dots of glow-in-the-dark paint that signaled she was going the right way.

Off in the distance, she could hear the bash. Laughs and screams and sounds of a party filled the night and gave her something to hold to. If she got lost, she could just follow the sounds.

"Well, well, well."

Katherine whipped around.

Behind her, a tall man stood. He had broad shoulders and a firm build. His hair was was jet black- as were his eyes. She had seen that black eye color. The Volturi had that color yesterday when she visited at noon, right before feeding time.

_Well, shit._

She hadn't accounted for vampires when she made her made her Things That Go Bump In The Night list. Of course not.

_Idiot._

"It's a little dangerous for such a little girl to be out her all by herself." He smirked.

She smiled and cocked an eyebrow, "It's a little dangerous for such a little vampire to be out here, as well."

Amusement flashed through his eyes as her stalked closer to her. She smoothly moved backwards. "And just how do you figure, _human_?"

She smirked. _Strength. You are in control. He is not. You control this. _"Country side or not, we are still within Volterra city limits. From what I've been told, _leech_, you have no right to feed here. Please, though, feel free to visit the next town over."

He chuckled darkly. "I doubt they care about one little American."

Katherine used all of her strength to contain her laughter. "Nope," she lied, "No they do not. They don't even know this little American knows they exist. However, they _will_ know when the American National Guard comes banging down every door in the city, wondering where their girl is. Then they'll be pissed. Then they'll find you. And then...then I will laugh."

He didn't reply, just continued to chuckle while walking towards her.

She tried to force him back. She focused on it, focused on the image of electric hands coming up from the ground and holding him in place. It wouldn't work though. She couldn't focus on the hands, she had too much else to think about. She had to be stronger than him mentally, had to outsmart him. She had to intimidate him. She also had to keep the other people safe, so she had to get him out of here. Another thing, would the Volturi know that he was here? Would they come to help her? She knew they would if they knew, but did they know? She would hope someone would be watching over the festivities. It only seemed smart, but maybe they weren't. So maybe she was handling this alone. And right now, her telekinesis wasn't working. Fantastic.

A louder laugh brought her back to reality.

"You're heart is just racing, little girl."

"Biological reaction." She stated simply, brushing off his silent accusation, "Fight or flight. I can decide whether or not I want run. As a safety measure, the body prepares for both, which would be the increase in adrenaline and heart rate. It's a sympathetic nervous system reaction, I have no control over it."

"Well," he ran to her, bringing the yards between them down to inches, "at least your body knows to be scared of me."

Then, she sensed him. Alec. He was near. She didn't question how she knew- too much was going on right now. She did, however, question why the hell he wasn't helping her. Felix said he was protective. So why wasn't he protecting her?

Suddenly, the leech in front of her ran the back of his hand along her cheek.

Thought left her. All she saw was white. Pure, bright white. Then, in the middle of the white, a little electric blue orb started forming. It was pulsing, then...it burst. And energy explosion. It expanded outward in a flash. It was beautiful.

Soon, it was gone, and there was just white again.

She blinked, and the white was gone. She was in the forest again, and Alec was by her side.

She shoved his shoulder. "Why didn't you help me?"

"Because you helped your self."

She rolled her eyes and looked for the leech that wanted to feast on her. He was about fifty feet away and on his back.

"What happened?" She asked Alec, "Why isn't he moving?"

"You sent him flying and I won't let him."

She nodded and started walking towards the stilled vampire. His body was limp and his eyes had a glaze over them- kind of like the dead body she had seen when her Anatomy class took a trip to a morgue.

Cool.

"I thought you had tests on Monday." Alec said, standing right next to her, "Why are you out when you were so adamant about studying?"

"Around noon today my brain short-circuited," She told him, "I couldn't focus on anything related to school. So, I'm taking a night off and starting fresh tomorrow morning."

"Hm," he nodded, "So are you girls doing anything else tonight?"

She thought for a moment, eyes still focused on the vampire. Pale and still, definitely looked like a dead body. "I don't know. Probably pop in a couple of horror movies, some of the girls may have a seance. Just halloween-y stuff, you know?"

He laughed, "Sure."

She smiled and glared up at him from under the bangs that had fallen in her face.

"You may want to go back to the party," He suggested, "I have to take care of him."

"Don't like people watching you while you work?" She joked, "How does one go about kill a vampire, anyway."

"Rip them apart and set the pieces on fire."

"Cool." She smiled, "I like it."

He smirked at her, "I'm glad you approve."

She chuckled deeply and walked down the path, towards the sounds of laughter and screams and a party.

_**A/N: I imagine the burst of energy looking like the antimatter explosion from the Angels and Demons movie. Minus all of the fire and chaos and what not...**_


	10. Oh My God Part 1

_**A/N: Insanely long and Thanksgiving break isn't even over yet...yeah, I decided to break this up into two chapters after this one capped off 5,030 words. Next chapter should be later tonight or sometime tomorrow.**_

_**Stargazer: **I know Alec, for all intents and purposes, **should **have come to her rescue, but there is a reason he didn't. It'll be explained in later chapters. Maybe chapter twelve or thirteen...I don't know yet. And I've never seen Iron Man, so I have no idea what you're talking about lol But you can imagine her gift as you want, my description of it serves no other purpose than...well...descriptive purposes lol_

**_HunterRaven: _**_Yeah, I get what you mean about Adam/Katherine/Alec and jealousy lol. But I have to tell you, it won't happen, not in this story. In other stories that I have running around in my head, plot- centered jealousy is a total possibility, but not in this one. Sorry :/, that's just not how Katherine works. And I'm pretty sure everyone wishes they had a superpower lol_

**_Chapter Song for Chapters 10 and 11: Oh My God by Ida Maria _**

**_~I  
~II  
~III_**

_"Find a cure, find a cure for my life. Find a cure, find a cure for my life. Find a cure, find a cure for my life. Find a cure, find a cure for my life. Oh my God!"_

**_~IV  
~V  
~VI_**

"Why do we get off for Thanksgiving?"

Katherine paused her actions and turned her head towards Rebecca, giving the girl an incredulous look.

"Because we're American citizens..."

"Yeah, but we're in Italy."

"So?" Katherine asked, tucking a rolled up camisole into her suitcase, "We- as well as every other student in our school- are citizens of a country that holds tradition in celebrating a country-specific holiday. Ergo, we get off for that holiday."

"But it's stupid," Rebecca groaned, leaning against the wall, "I hate traveling, anyway."

"Make it fun." Katherine shrugged.

Beck rolled her eyes. "How? It's freaking impossible."

"Relish the solitude." The younger of the two suggested, "Relish the fact that you're surrounded by complete strangers who won't talk to you, won't bother you. Relish the time to just sit back and think."

"But it's so boring." Becky whined, pouting and falling to the floor. "I'm going to be on a plane for an hour. An hour, Kat!"

Katherine sighed and rolled her eyes. "God forbid it." She commented sarcastically, "I'm going to be on a train for twelve. Then a ferry, then another train, then a cab."

"I thought you liked traveling," Beck snipped, her voice mumbled by the fact that her head was in her knees.

"I do. I asked to take the train just because I knew it would take longer. I just want you to realize that you could have it worse."

"Whatever," Rebecca moaned as she rose from the carpeted floor, "I'm going to go pack. Later, dude."

"Later," Katherine called as her friend walked out the door. After patting down her last shirt, she ran a quick mental inventory of what she packed.

Shirts for two weeks? Yes.  
Pants, skirts and leggings? Yes.  
Underwear? Yes.  
Shoes? Duh.  
Beauty supplies- including, but not limited to: curling iron, flat iron and makeup? Yes, yes and yes.  
Laptop, charger and other electronic devices? Got them.  
Hobbies?

"Hobbies," she mumbled to herself as she paced over to her brimming bookshelf. Haphazardly, she selected six of her either unread and favorite books, stuffing four of them into her suitcase and leaving the other two for the trip.

Next , she made the three steps over to her closet and pulled her knitting and sewing baskets off of the top shelf. She removed a few select threads, yarns and needles before replacing the baskets and closing her nearly empty closet.

Placing the items next to her suitcase, Katherine made her way over to her desk. She pulled out the bottom drawer and picked up three books. A sketch book, a notebook she used for random writings and doodles and a her leather bound journal. She placed the three books with her carry-ons and went to the middle, right hand drawer on her desk. Shading pencils, oil pastels, colored pens and mechanical pencils. All would be needed or proper use of the books.

She placed her carry-ons in her cheap, hand-me-down camouflage tote bag, tossing her hairbrush and powder compact into the front pocket. With a loud zip, she closed her suitcase and placed its wheels on the floor as she swept her tote onto her opposite shoulder. She closed her window and began towards her bedroom door, but not before grabbing Snow off of her bed.

* * *

Katherine lounged in the red leather seat of the first class section of the train. Her tote bag was in the seat next her, opened and half empty. On the wooden table in front of her lay her sketch book and pastels, with a half colored fairy on the page. In her lap was her current read, _Mr. Perfect _by Linda Howard. It was the first Linda Howard book she had bought on her own. She had seen it at the library's book sale in the clearance section. Considering the terrible shape the book was in, she understood why it was there. However, the poor condition of the physical novel in no way affects the story or characters, all of whom she adored. Even the killer. She even adored the killer.

But now wasn't the time for reading. Now was the time for thinking. Re-reading the interactions of the stubborn and sarcastic Jaine Bright and the playful and sensual Detective Sam Donovan made her think of her own annoying persistent admirer.

Alec had been occupying brain space frequently in the recent weeks. Katherine would find herself thinking about his laughter and smile, or the disturbingly attractive gleam he got in his eyes when he began to incessantly flirt with her- making her noticeably uncomfortable and embarrassed by her own desires. She would think about how he interacted with his friends, mature and business-like one minute and then being a normal thirteen year old boy the next.  
And when he was with his sister, she could almost see their minds interact, working together like a freaking assembly line. Alec does one think, Jane immediately does the next the so on and so on. They were one soul in two bodies, yet they still fought like any normal siblings. They just moved past the fight in a couple of minutes, instead of steaming for days.  
He was methodical and systematic. Like her, he was always thinking. What would happen next? What _could _happen next? What is the most plausible event to occur in the recent future? How do I handle this event? What about a different event? There is always plan. The only difference between her and him was that rarely was he caught off of guard, whereas she was usually _so _caught up in her thoughts that she jumps when a leaf hits her in the face.

He painted, she noticed. When she had hid in his room during "lunch", she saw the easel under his bed and found some jars of paint and some graphite pencils in his desk drawers. She hadn't looked for the actual paintings- she wasn't that much of a snoop- but she assumed that they were fantastic.

One day, she would have to pull a Rose. "Draw me like one of your French girls."

She snorted at the idea. Then chuckled. Then busted out laughing. Her and Alec in The Titanic as Jack and Rose. God, she hated that movie. If she had been drinking milk, it'd have come out of her nose by now.

When her laughing fit was done- cheeks in pain from being so stretched- Katherine adjusted her top and slouched back down in her seat, gazing at the passing country side. Her smile calmed as her thoughts drifted away from Alec as a Wisconsin boy and back to her actual Alec.

**_My _**_Alec? _She shrugged and brushed it off. The point was, thinking of Alec was nice. She liked it, it made her smile. That was weird. She had had crushes before, but it never felt like this. Thinking of a boy never made her just...smile...it was kind of delightful.

* * *

Aro looked up from his writings.

"Sister," He addressed the light blonde young woman standing in the doorway of his study, arms crossed, "Might I be able to help you with something?"

"The human child, she is out of town, correct?"

He nodded in confusion, "Yes, she is celebrating a holiday with her family in Sicily. Do you believe this to be a problem?"

She sighed. "I believe it to be a risk."

"I assure you, Athenadora, I have the utmost confidence that Katherine is not a risk to our secrecy."

She smiled a worried smile. "That is not the risk I am concerned about, Aro."

She could see the confusion written on his face. Poor little Aro. He didn't much like being confused.

"During her holiday...there is to be a full moon." Realization dawned on his face as she spoke, "You know as well as I that the majority of wolves have mates."

He stood up, worry on his face as he nodded, "Yes, yes. Oh, this is not good. Have you spoken to Caius about this?"

She barked out a sarcastic laugh.

Aro shook his head, "Yes, of course, what was I thinking. What days is the moon to be full?"

"Does it matter?" She asked, "We know enough to know that the werewolves are not only a danger when the moon is full, but beforehand as well."

He sat on the corner of his desk and nodded his head slowly, deep in his thoughts.

"I shall send Demetri and Alec-"

"Not Alec."

He was confused again.

Athenadora rolled her eyes. "If you tell Alec that she is in danger and send him to watch over her, he would be inclined to attack every person to come near her."

Aro thought for a moment. She was right. She always was, as was Sulpicia. Good God, those two could run the Volturi if they were persuaded to do so.

"Then I shall send Demetri and Jane. I'm aware of the...tensions between them, but Felix is away at the moment and I don't trust any lower guard members to be able to handle a wolf safely as well as discreetly."

The blonde considered his answer before nodding her approval. "Jane is extremely professional, so she would not allow whatever is going on between them personally to affect her job. Jane and Demetri should work."

* * *

"Thank you," She told the cab driving as she handed him the money she owed. He wished her a swell holiday and drove off.

She turned around and observed the house in front of her. Two stories, a big tree in the front lawn and a new, black roof. Meh. It was "home".

_I guess._

With a downtrodden sigh, she began her trek up the cement driveway, walking in between the four cars that filled it. Her mother had told her that the family would be coming to their house for Thanksgiving, but she didn't understand why. Her immediate family consisted of herself, her mother and her father. Three people. That's three plane tickets. And yet, the nine relatives that they were close to- two of which were toddlers- all came here from the US. Where was the logic in that?

She walked into her garage and weaved around her mom's car, squeezing between the pile of firewood and the sleek, black car exterior until she made it to the house's entrance, opening the door and making her way in.

Without a word, Katherine set the wheels of her suitcase on the hardwood floor started walking to her room.

"Hey girlie!" Her aunt Abby greeted with a wide, friendly smile from the kitchen. Her aunt always loved the kitchen.

Katherine smiled shyly, feeling entirely uncomfortable in her own home. "Hi Aunt Abby."

"How was your trip?"

"Long." She replied with a huff and a smile. She wouldn't tell her aunt that she enjoyed the length, because her aunt wouldn't understand. And if her aunt doesn't understand something, then it must be wrong.

"Well, why didn't you take a plane?" Her aunt asked as she kneaded some dough.

"I hate airports," Katherine lied easily as she made her way to the hall and away from the kitchen.

"Don't we all?" Her aunt called after her as Katherine fully entered the hallway and made her way to the stairs.

"I don't wanna!" A small girl screeched from one of the guest rooms. Alexa, her two year old...cousin? God-cousin? The hell if Katherine knew. All she knew was that Alexa was small and Alexa was loud and she- Katherine- was Alexa's favorite person in the world.

"Alexa." Her mother started calmly. Ah, yes. Katherine's...somethings were very new-agey when it came to parenting. No yelling, no spanking. Speak calmly and clearly and make compromises. Because small children _totally_ understand honor and keeping to one's agreement.

"No!"

"Alexa."

"No!"

That's when her father snapped.

"That's it, Alexis! If you don't wanna play with your little brother, then you won't play at all. Go stand in the no-no corner."

Katherine shivered. She remembered- and she hated- the no-no corner. It was one of the most degrading, damaging things you could do to your child. At least in her mind. Honestly, you're training your child to be invisible. You're imbedding the idea that no matter what they do, society won't recognize them. All society will do is judge them.

Well, that's what _she _learned from the no-no corner. And she still used it as punishment when she babysat or when she was mad at her friends. How messed up was that?

Katherine peeked through the open door and saw hell. A pouting three year old in the corner, a bouncing two year old in a crib and two very stressed parents trying to get all of their things settled.

_Those two are a hot mess. _She thought whilst shaking her head. Candice and Michael were insane. Well, at least Candice was. No one understood why someone as great as her was with a total bum like Michael.

Down at the end of the hall was another open door. Her twenty-three year old cousin Adrien lounged on the bed, earphones in and phone in hand.

Next to Adrien's room was her aunt Abby's, noticeable by the closed door. Abby liked her privacy as much as Katherine did.

Across from Abby's room was the bathroom. There was a linens closet and a laundry room until the hallway ended with another door.

This door was...depressing. It was white, just blank white. No stickers, no drawings, no personalization. Just white. Just like every other door in the house.

Katherine sighed to herself and opened the door to her bedroom. Inside was a brown dresser, a full-length mirror, a bed and a book shelf. The room was big, bigger than most, and the room was empty. It was completely devoid of personality. The closest thing to happiness in the room was the bedspread- a light blue, commercial quilt with pink and yellow patches. That's it. The curtains were off-white, the carpet was a soft brown and there were no posters or pictures on the wall.

Releasing her thoughts, Katherine heaved her suitcase onto the bed and started moving the items to their proper places in the room.

* * *

"She's actually pretty hot."

Jane shot Demetri a disbelieving look.

"What?" He asked, looking back through her window, "She is. She's got that nice, womanly figure. Kind of like Marylin Monroe."

Jane cringed, "I never like Monroe. Nice body and all, but her 'sexy gaze' never really did it for me."

"Eh," He shrugged, resting his elbows against the roof of the shed on which they sat, "Too each their own."

Jane laughed, wrapping her arms around her legs, "So can I take this as conformation that you are no longer chasing me?"

He looked up at her. "Why do you say that?"

She laughed sarcastically and looked him as though he were the densest man to roam the planet, "Because you're talking with me about how attractive other women are. That doesn't really make a girl melt, you know."

"I will never stop chasing you, Jane," He told her, completely serious, "Not until you're mine."

"Or until you've found your mate," She pointed out.

"I already have."

"No you haven't, you asshole." She bit before changing the subject. "I feel really weird doing this."

"Watching an obvious thirteen year old girl through her window?" Demetri asked with a smile, "How so?"

Jane laughed and laid back on the shed roof, gazing up at the night sky, and the waxing gibbous moon.

* * *

The sound of a crash bounced off of the cold, white walls of the supermarket. Adrien rolled her eyes and yanked her little brother up off of the tile floor.

"How's that 4.0 working out for you?" Katherine mocked her cousin William.

"It's not transitioning well into the real world," He told her in feigned confusion, "Something must have been lost in translation."

"Or you're just an idiot." Adrien offered as she placed their items back in the now up-right cart.

Katherine snapped her fingers. "That's got to be it."

"So, Kat," William started, averting the lime light away from himself, "How's school going? Any cute boys or whatever?"

"They separate the sexes onto different campuses, so...yes." She laughed, tossing a box of cereal into the cart.

William and Adrien looked perplexed.

"I find boys to be a lot cuter when I don't have to look at their ugly faces every day." Katherine explained with a smile. Adrien cackled and William pouted at the insult to his gender.

"How are your grades?" Adrien asked as the three turned down another aisle.

Katherine shrugged, "They're fine, I guess."

"As and Bs, Bs and Cs, come on, what's 'fine'?" The twenty three year old pushed.

"I have a B in Algebra I, everything else is in the A range."

"Really?" William inquired in shock, "Your parents act like your flunking."

Katherine nodded, "Yeah..I blame you for that." She told him simply. Adrien laughed.

"Damn right," she agreed, "The little shit always ruins the grading curve."

"Well sorry," her little brother snarled, crossing his arms, "But I'm not going to fail on purpose just to make _you _happy."

"No, of course not," Katherine agreed entirely, "That's not the problem. The problem is with parents who can't identify the fact that William and Adrien and Katherine are three individual people who have their own strengths and weakness and who need to be treated differently from one another.

"Though I do hate the two of you a little bit." She told them with a shrug, pulling a box of granola bars off the shelf, "I'm an only child and you guys stepped in and gave me all of the hell of siblings with none of the fun like staying up all night, playing in the backyard together, or just having someone around the house to be bored with. So, yeah, thanks for nothing."

"Eh, no problem," William playful blew off, earning him a lighthearted shove from his cousin.

"You just gotta ignore the bastards." Adrien told Katherine.

"I know," Katherine responded, "And I do, fundamentally. In the big picture, what they say to me doesn't matter because I know I'm above and beyond a lot of people and it's their problem if they can't see it. But in the moment, when they're yelling at me and telling me I'll never amount to anything...it can mess you up."

Adrien scoffed, "Honey, my mother is Lauren Turner. Trust me, I know where you're coming from."

Katherine's eyes widen at the mention of her first cousin, Lauren. Lauren was the daughter of her aunt Abby and ten different shades of crazy. She mentally and emotionally abused the hell out of Adrien. So much so that Adrien developed some kind of personality disorder- now she had three different people floating around in her head that she'd call upon whenever shit got to be too much for herself. She started doing this- becoming different people- when she was seven years old and she never looked back.

For environment and environment alone to be the cause of someone's mental disease, that environment has to be disastrous. So what happened to Lauren to make her so evil?

"Why the hell is your mom so fucking nuts?"

Her two cousins scoffed and rolled their eyes.

"Ask Grandma Abby," William said, "She raised the bitch."

"That's explanation enough." Adrien offered with a bitter laugh.

Silence fell over them as they each contemplated the twists and turns and bumps and nicks on Memory Lane of their fucked up family.

Abusive grandfather, alcoholic grandmother, druggies left and right, one cousin in a mental institution after trying to kill his teacher, an aunt in a nursing home after mixing drugs and booze and messing up her brain. Parents who had no idea how to raise their kids and didn't give a damn about it and kids who couldn't fucking wait to escape.

"No offensive to you guys," Katherine said after sometime, "but I'll be glad when this holiday is over."

They nodded in agreement.

* * *

"Adam! Your girlfriend's on the roof!"

"She is not my girlfriend!" Adam shouted at his nineteen year old brother, knowing full well he was talking about Katherine and not Hannah. Katherine lived two blocks away. Hannah lived in northern Italy. So, unless Hannah perfected the art of teleportation (and got over her fear of heights), he highly doubted _she_ was on his roof.

Adam jogged up the stairs and into his messy room, crawling out his window and onto the small roof under the second floor windows.

Katherine was playing with a naked Barbie doll.

"The hell?" He asked.

She laughed, "I don't know, dude. I guess Suzy tossed it up here or something." She told him, tossing the nudist Barbie aside. "So what's up?"

"Nothing much," he said, laying down, "Family's together, so that's nice. My brother is thinking about going into the Army."

"Family tradition?"

"God I hope not," He laughed, "There's not a chance in hell I'm joining anything."

Katherine laughed quietly. "How are things between you and Hannah?"

Adam paused. Katherine and him didn't know each other very well, could he really talk to her about his relationship?

"Uh...I don't know..."

"Problems?" She inquired with concern.

"Eh...I hate her."

Katherine laughed.

"I'm completely serious." Adam told her dead on, "I hate Hannah. Always have. She's insanely annoying, everything about her. I hate her."

"And you're dating her because...?"

"I hate being alone more." He shrugged. She barked a sarcastic laugh.

"You are so pathetic!" She shouted at him, laughter seeping out every pore of her body.

"I know, I know." He admitted, "But it's true. The only reason I'm still with her is because I don't know any other girl willing to date me."

Katherine rolled her eyes. "You can't be _that _bad."

He looked up at her. "Would _you _date me?" He worked his hardest at concealing the fact that it was an honest-to-God question.

"Oh God, no." She said immediately, scrunching her face like she'd eaten a lemon, "Not a chance in hell, dude."

Adam gave her a look of humorous shock, hoping it would disguise the pain he was really feeling. "And just why the hell not?"

"You're anger." She told him simply. "My dad always have those unpredictable bursts of anger and they scare the bejesus out of me. I could never date a guy like that. I've only seen you angry once, but it was enough." She laughed nervously.

He shrugged, trying to play her total rejection off. Okay, alright, so there was never a chance of them being together. Alright, now he knew and he didn't kill the friendship. So he was in the Friend Zone, at least it was better than being utterly off of her radar.

"So what's up in your world?" He asked her, picking at one of the roof shingles.

"Not a whole lot," She told him, tugging at the leaves of a nearby tree. He assumed that's how she got up here. "Alexa and Johnathon are cute as ever, but annoying as hell. Lauren is nuts and her husband Jim is no help and my aunt is tapping dancing on my last good nerve."

"God, I'm so glad my family didn't come in." He laughed, "What about your parents?"

She shrugged, "They're fine. They haven't really bugged me a bunch. At least, not yet."

"We still got a week and a half left," He reminded her with a taunting smile, "Maybe they're just saving the best for last."

She rolled her eyes a let out a humorless laugh, "I'm honestly sure that's it."

"Hey!" A little bell voice called from below. The teenagers sat up and peered over the edge of the gutter at the ten year old blonde girl standing in the grass, "We're going to play football in the back, come on!"

Adam and Katherine acknowledged her and crawled into his bedroom.

"You know I have no idea how to even _throw _a football, right?" Katherine informed him, "Your room is a pit."

"I'm aware. And it's not like this is the NFL, you'll be fine."

* * *

"What are they playing?"

"American football." Demetri answered his brunette companion.

"It looks like rugby." She noted innocently.

"Pretty much." Demetri laughed, confirming her suspicions.

"Then why don't they just call it rugby?"

"You know they call football 'soccer', right?"

"Why!"

He chuckled, "I haven't got a clue."

Jane crossed her arms and scowled in disgust. "I hate Americans."

"I know." Demetri chuckled once more.

"I really hate them."

"I know." He laughed, looking over to her. Her full lips were pursed and her nose was scrunched up, eyes burning with disdain. He thought it was adorable, imagining that it was similar to what a homicidal bunny rabbit would look like.

Consumed with how delightfully darling she looked, Demetri was immersed with a potentially fatal desire.

Never before had desire for her hit him so suddenly. Yes, he had felt it for her before, but usually he would excuse himself and leave, giving himself time to regain composure. However, he couldn't do that right now. No, he would never risk leaving her alone when they were on detail for a werewolf. Regardless of however gifted she is, a werewolf is a werewolf, and a werewolf is dangerous.

Trying to collect himself, Demetri turned to focus on the game happening a few blocks over. He tried to center his thoughts on how amusing it was to witness Katherine's fumbling attempts at passing the ball, or watching a middle-aged woman throw a plastic bottle at a young man's head. He tried to focus on the big, yellow dog that ran right in the middle of the game and nearly trampled a laughing little girl.

But he couldn't focus on them. His thoughts immediately came back to the tiny girl next to him. Her short, pale brown hair was tucked behind her ears, exposing her bright red eyes and dark lips. His eyes stuck to her lips, watching them twitch and pull back in snarls and scowls as she further contemplated things she hated. Her sharp, white teeth would bite the inside of her lower lip, and his desire would grow.

Finally, he had decided that whatever fresh hell Jane inflicted upon him would be worth the gluttonous gratification that would come from just two seconds of pleasure of indulging in his desire for once.

Insanity on his side, Demetri _literally _lifted the nearly five foot girl up and attacked her plump lips. He sucked on her ample lower lip and grazed her granite skin with his sharp teeth. A shiver ran through his ice body as he tried to deepen the kiss, running his tongue along her upper lip, tasting her sweetness.

Soon enough, as he expected, horrible pain shot through his body. However, he smiled on the inside. She had tortured him plenty of times before, and this was nothing compared to she _could _do.

He dropped her instantly and crumpled onto the shingled roof of the villa atop which they stood, shaded by the large and aged trees that covered the old neighborhood.

With ease, the pixie-like girl grabbed the collar of Demetri's cloak, yanked him up to meet her face-to-face, and kissed him harshly before tossing him off of the roof. He landed on the ground with a thud- and a smile- and looked back up to the roof.

Jane was watching the game, an impish smirk on her face.


	11. Oh My God Part 2

_**A/N: Thank you, HermioneandMarcus, for your kind review and I hope this update was fast enough for you :) In know I'm kind of outside the 'tomorrow' range, but 1:06 AM is pretty close in my book. **_

_**Chapter Song: Oh My God by Ida Maria**_

_**~I  
~II  
~III**_

_"Find a cure, find a cure for my life. Find a cure, find a cure for my life. Put a price, put a price on my soul. Put a price, put a price on my soul. Build a wall. Build a fortress around my heart. Oh my God! Oh you think I'm control, oh my God! Oh, you think it's all for fun."_

**_~IV  
~V  
~VI_**

**__**Katherine sat out on her deck, watching her cousin-thing Alexa and a little neighbor girl run around the backyard. Her mother and Candice were talking about some useless bit of discussion while her father and Micheal and Jim were at the grill. She had no idea where Lauren and Abby were, and she really didn't care.

William was playing with little Johnny and Adrien had gone to the bowling alley with Adam's brother, Nick. Katherine smiled a Johnny, who was thoroughly preoccupied with blowing a spit-bubble, and decided to make this trip worthwhile for the baby boy.

She hoisted herself out of her chair- grabbed another chocolate chip cookie from the table in front of her- and made her way inside, walking past an arguing Lauren and Abby without a second glance.

Jogging up the maple-wood stairs, Katherine easily took the turns that led to her room and quickly shut her door- avoiding the chance of anybody annoying her. She threw herself onto her bed with a giggle and lifted her wicker basket of knitting supplies onto the bed with her.

She yanked the soft, light blue yarn and her favorite needles from the basket, sitting up and starting her new project.

* * *

With sigh, Alec leaned back in one of the brown, leather chairs he had and gazed out his window. Jane, Felix and Demetri were all away- as was Katherine- and he was entirely bored.

Consumed by the boredom, Alec's mind wandered to the recent going-ons in the palace. Demetri had started backing off of his sister, which was good. He wasn't sure how Demetri was still sane after so many torture sessions at the hands- or mind- of his sister. Maybe he wasn't entirely sane. Maybe that was the whole reason he hadn't given up completely yet.

Along the line of relationships, Alec's mind went to Katherine. He had been trying his damnedest to contain himself around her and not jump her. It was hard, though. Every time she flashed that adorable, crooked smile, every time she openly laughed, every time she got that elfin glimmer in her deep, brown eyes when they wrestled for control in the dangerous game of flirtation, he nearly pounced. He never did, he knew that would frighten her. And after what he saw during Halloween, fear was not something he wanted induce in her.

He remembered Halloween. He hated sitting back, watching that..._leech _try to intimidate his girl. But he had to, it was Sulpicia's orders.

Aro and Caius were very interested in knowing how her gift was progressing, but she was adamant about not demonstrating anything. All three masters were lost as to why- the two wives just rolled their eyes at the men's density. Sulpicia had pulled the guard aside and told them to pay special attention to Katherine when she was either training or under stress, because then Aro could later see her progression through their eyes.  
And few things were more stressful than a vampire ready to kill you.

So, he sat back, and he watched, and Aro was pleased. Good for Aro.

* * *

"Dude, seriously, I'm considering going to McDonalds."

Katherine laughed. "I thought you hate McDonalds, Beck."

"I do!" Her friend shouted over the phone, her voice distorted by the 'Speaker' function Katherine had going so she could sketch, watch TV and talk to her friend, "But I'm starving to death over here!"

"At least you have to choice of eating," Katherine pointed out with a laugh, "Unless you're helping to cook, no one is allowed near the kitch-COME ON! YOU COULD HAVE GOT THAT!"

Rebecca laughed, "What happened?"

"Remember last summer, when we would just watch ESPN all the time for lack of anything better to do?"

"Yeah..."

Katherine sighed and rolled onto her back, "Yeah, well, I kind of got a taste for tennis and now I'm watching it and Nadal totally just screwed up. Like, _I _could have gotten that pass. Jackass."

"Someone's cranky." Katherine could hear the smile in Becky's voice.

"I haven't eaten all day. Like I was saying before, no one is allowed to eat until dinner. It's ridiculous. I've locked myself in my room just because I'm too hungry to deal with the family."

"Sneak out and raid Adam's kitchen?"

"I'm actually debating whether or not it's worth the risk..."

"What risk?"

"The lattice trellis on my side of the house are covered in ivy. They're slippery as hell. But I'm hungry as hell, so it's all about which hell is worse." She explained with a laugh.

"So what is your family making?"

"It's what my aunt is making," She told her, "That's why I'm not helping. She's goes nuts when she's in the kitchen- I'm talking Joseph Stalin crazy. It's safer to stay out of her way. As long as I get some food, I'm happy."

"Oh, food. I love food. What's your favorite Thanksgiving food, Katie?"

She smiled, "Pumpkin pie. There is no greater gift from God."

"Eww, gross. I hate pumpkin pie. I love the cranberries."

Katherine's face scrunched and her stomach churned at the memory. "Oh my God, I hate cranberries. It's something about the texture. The second one of those disgusting, slimy creatures slid down my throat, I'm upchucked instantly. It was horrible."

"Good times, bro."

"Without a doubt," She laughed, "Do you like stuffing?"

"Yeah, I guess. Why?"

"I love it. But chances are I won't be able to have any." She pouted, hatred seeping into her voice.

"Why not?"

Katherine sighed, "My aunt loves nuts. She puts them in everything, I swear to God."

"You don't like them?" Her friend guessed.

"I'm allergic," She told Beck, "Tree nuts. That's basically every kind of nut out there."

"Oh...Is that why you didn't eat Mallory's macadamia nut cookies?"

"Yup," She admitted, "And chances are, Abby put some kind of nut in the stuffing."

"Wouldn't your parents tell her not to?"

Katherine scoffed bitterly, "Please. I doubt they even remember my middle name."

"Well, yeah, but your middle name doesn't have the potential of killing you...I mean, I wold think a parent would take special care to keep their kid alive."

Katie laughed bitterly. "Yeah, you'd think, wouldn't you? Anyway, dude, I'm going to search through my room and see if I have any cookies up here or anything. Eat some cranberries for me."

"Only if you have an extra slice of pumpkin pie for me."

Katherine laughed, "I will have no problem with that. Later dude."

"Bye."

With that, Katherine tapped the red button on the screen on her phone and rolled off of her bed, flipping the quilt up and looking under her bed for any hidden snacks from summer.

Stale cookies were better than no cookies.

At the sight of the empty space, she huffed and sat up, leaning on the balls of her feet. She needed food. When the hell was dinner going to be- "Katherine!"

Cool.

The sounds of three year old feet stomping rang through the hall, and little Alexa popped her head into Katherine's room.

"Food's weady! Food's weady! Food's weady!"

Katherine giggled at the energetic child that ran up to her, grabbing her hand. "Come on, come on, come on! You sit nes to me an Johnatin!"

Katherine smiled, "Really? Sounds like fun, kiddo."

"Oh, it 'ill be, it 'ill be, it 'ill be!" She shouted, "Come on, come on, come on!"

Katherine laughed and followed along as the three year old tugged her down the the dining room. As the two descended the stairs, Katherine noticed a melancholy looking William motioning for her to come to him. She sent Alexa to claim their spots at the table and made her way to her cousin.

"What's up?"

Her cousin sighed and Katherine noted how he avoided all eye contact with her. She also noticed how his eyes seemed wetter than usual.

"...don't eat anything..."

Katherine was lost. "Why?"

William took a deep breath before continuing. "You see how everything has gravy on it?"

"Yeah..."

"She put nuts in the gravy."

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"WHAT THE FU-"

William clamped a hand over his cousin's mouth and pulled her out onto the deck. He felt her tears pool against his hand and anger and disappointment filled him to the brink. She was only a month his junior, but he always felt very protective of her. He could never help his own sister, and as Kat had pointed out early, they kind of fell into the role of siblings. So when their family- their own flesh and blood- upset her, they upset him.

Once on the deck, he released her and let the rant start.

"What...the FUCK! I mean...how...why...oh my GOD! I FUCKING HATE THEM! ALL OF THEM!"

That was all he understood before her words fell into indistinguishable jibber- jabber. He watched as her face and eyes reddened. Her lips swelled and stretched as she sobbed and screamed, and he jerked in sympathy pain when he heard her voice crack. She was going to have a hell of a sore throat later.

Out of the corner of his eye, William saw movement. He tried to get a better look, but everything looked perfectly fine.

His focus was brought back to his cousin when an earth-shattering screech ripped from her tattered vocal cords. He heard his uncle and Micheal come around the house and yell at them.

Suddenly, Katherine lifted her leg and kicked over the $500 glass deck table. With a heavy thud and a disturbing shatter, the table was destroyed. And Katherine's dad was pissed.

The giant man stormed up the stairs of the deck and yanked his daughter around to face him, burning and bruising her arm.

"The fuck do you think you're doing, you stupid jackass?" He shouted, shoving her down to the pile of broken glass.

William shot out of the seat he had taken, ready to tackle the son of a bitch that hurt his little sister.

Before he could get anywhere near him, however, something happened.

Two people he had never seen- a guy and a younger looking girl- were on the deck. The girl caught Katherine before she landed on the glass and helped her regain her balance, checking her arm for injuries. The guy was in his uncle's face.

His uncle had tried to hit the guy, but he caught the army man's hand in his own, smaller one. Will watched as the strange man tighten his grip, and his uncle crumbled to the floor. He watched the stranger snarl and growl something too low for him to hear, but it sounded along the lines of "You're despicable."

William looked back at Katherine, who was still crying and sobbing, and saw the little girl with straight, brown hair leading her down the steps and onto the lawn.

A crash drew his attention back to the two men, and he saw his uncle on the ground with the other man walking away, towards the girls. When the three were out of sight, William returned to the house without a second look at his uncle.

"Whewe's Kitty?"

He gave the bouncing and confused three year old a weak smile. "She had to leave with some friends sweety, but she wants you to save her some pumpkin pie. Do you think you can do that?"

Alexa shook her head. "Aunty Abby only made PEE-can."

William let out a long breath. "Of course. Okay, kiddo, I'll tell you what, we're going to make Kitty her very own pie, okay? We'll go out right after dinner and get all of the stuff, how does that sound?"

She smiled and nodded vigorously.

William smiled at her innocence and joy, "Cool. I have to go get something from Kitty's room, but I'll be right back. Save me a seat."

She gave him the okay and he went upstairs. While he jogged up them, he heard the commotion of his uncle coming inside with his injuries. The adults were all clucking and fussing over him, then the broken table. Never once did anyone ask about Katherine. The fuck was wrong with these people?

"Hey Squirt, what's going on?" Adrien addressed her little brother.

"Katherine's going home." He told, storming into his cousin's room.

"Home?" Adrien asked, following her little brother and watching as he started packing her bags, "You mean the school?"

He nodded, "It's a far better home than this place."

Adrien sat on the corner of the bed, "No argument here. Hey, check it out." She lifted a light blue blanket from off the bed. The name 'Johnathan' was stitched into the top.

"She made something for Alexa, too." William noted, picking up a small, pink and yellow teddy bear.

"She must have started that earlier." Adrien said, "It would definitely take longer to make that bear than that blanket."

"Or she just stayed up all night." He pointed out, continuing to throw clothes into the suitcase. "She left with some friends after shit went down. But she's going to come back later, and I'm going to give her her stuff and she's going to make her way back to Volterra."

"Don't you think her parents are going to call the cops or something?"

"Nope." He told her simply, "They're not as oblivious as they seem. They pay attention, they just don't care until it messes up their perfect little fantasies. They know Katherine is smart and courageous and doesn't give a fuck about them, and they know that she would milk every aspect of abuse and neglect and child endangerment dry until she either won or the courts dropped it."

Adrien laughed and shook her head. "That girl sure can raise hell when she wants to, can't she?"

"Raise it? She gave birth to that motherfucker."

Adrien laughed again, before being interrupted by her mother.

"Adrien! William! Come down for dinner!"

"Not hungry!" They both shouted in response, though it was totally false. Adrien didn't want to deal with her mom and there was no way in hell William would be able to face his uncle with any respect.

For the next two hours, William and Adrien stayed holed up in their younger cousin's room. Each one of them had the sneaking suspicion that dear old Katherine wouldn't be seeing that room again.

* * *

Katherine curled up in the leather seat of the train.

_Didn't think I'd be back here so soon._

After her father had nearly _killed _her- God only knows what could have happened if a shard of glass nicked her carotid artery or rummaged her spleen or became imbedded in her heart or one of her lungs- Demetri and Jane had stayed with her. They took her out for some dinner and sat with her at a local park while she sobbed out her pathetic life story, peppered with a couple curses on her family and old friends here and there.

Once the sun had gone down, she had snuck up to William's window- on the ground level- and, sure enough, he had all of her stuff waiting for her. That includes a piece of pumpkin pie he and Alexa made especially for her. It definitely made her smile.

Now, however, the smile was gone. Now, she sat- alone- on a train at one in the morning. She was, for all intents and purposes, running away from home. The police would probably be on her ass soon enough, dragging her back to her parents. Then she would probably have to go to therapy and deal with a whole bunch a stupid shit from people who think they know everything. Yes, they may know a lot, but they don't know her. But they wouldn't understand that, and she'd have to kiss some serious ass to end the hell that was coming her way.

However, as her eyelids became heavier and heavier, she found it harder to care. Right now, she just wanted...she just wanted a hug. She didn't even care if it was from some random stranger a few cars down, she just really wanted a hug.

More tears stung her eyes as she continued to mull over how much she craved the simple sign of affection. All she wanted was for someone to actually care about her, her feelings, her well being. No body ever cared about her. She was always the strong one, the smart one, the unflappable one. No one ever worried about her because no one ever had to. But right now, she really just want a hug.

Katherine groaned and rubbed her already sore eyes.

Seriously, how was she not dehydrated yet?

A few minutes later, as Katherine was drifting in and out of what promised to be a restless sleep, the sound of a sliding compartment door awoke her. No one else had been in the car when she got on (which is why she chose this particular car) and who would be _just _getting on a long-distance train this late?

When she opened her tired eyes, she got her answer.

Standing in the doorway was Alec Volturi, dressed to the nines in a perfectly tailored, deep brown suit and partially unbuttoned golden dress shirt. He gave her a careful smile and she felt more tears beginning to form. Seriously, this crying thing was getting ridiculous.

Putting up the arm rest divider, she slid out from the two leather seat on her side of the table and walked up to him. Without a word, she wrapped her bare arms around his torso- taking the hug she so desperately. He happily obliged and held her closely.

"Why are you here?" She asked, her questioned muffled s she held onto him for dear life.

"Jane called," He told her easily, nuzzling his face in her chocolate curls, inhaling that magonlian lily scent he seemed to love so much, "She told me everything and figured you'd need someone you're close to. Naturally, I jumped at the chance."

She smiled weakly, chuckling to herself. "Big picture wise, you are probably the person on this planet I am closest to, all things considered."

He chuckled as she began to pull away, grasping a hand on his sleeve and leading him to where she had taken up residence on the train. Picking up her fallen shawl, Katherine scooted in first and Alec benevolently took his seat next her. She wrapped her red, knitted shawl around her chilled arms and snuggled up next to her vampire. She should probably be worried about it, be worried about how dependent she seemed to be and the risks that came with it. She should probably worry about whether or not she'd regret being so emotionally open later. She should probably _not _be snuggling with _anyone_, considering it was always to 'intimate' in her mind. Right now, in _her _ mind, what she was doing was like sex, only more emotional. Both parties were in it willingly, one or both because it felt good. This action put both parties at extreme risk of developing an emotional attachment that could later be used to hurt them. This was risky. Far too risky.

But she didn't care. It felt good, it felt right. And right now- so emotionally raw and mentally and physically worn out- Katherine didn't give a rat's ass about the future or the risks it holds. All she cared about was right now. All she cared about was having Alec hold her while her world came crumbling down around her. Because, as long as he was there, she felt safe. She felt taken care of. She felt cared about.

And all she wanted, in her entire conscious life, was to be cared about.


	12. Lost in Irvine

_**A/N: My apologies for how long this took. Honestly, I just couldn't figure out what I wanted to do with this chapter.**_

_**Ashes2Dust: **Yes, yes they do suck. The only reason Katherine never reported them to anyone is because- and this is something that will be seen a lot later as a way of thinking for Katherine- it could be worse. _

**_Larcian:_**_Killing for a fictional character lol Awesome lol Just try not to turn this into a Catcher in the Rye situation, m'kay? lol_

**_Stargazer: _**_Jane is weird lol We all know that. And I know putting nuts in gravy sounds odd, but that's actually how some people season it. I know, it sounds strange to me too, but it is what it is. And you should totally team up with Larcian. Something tells me Katherine's parents would be totally taken care of..._

_**Chapter Song: Lost by Katy Perry**  
_

**-Please note, the song Katherine is listening to in the chapter is Irvine by Kelly Clarkson-**_  
_

_**~I  
~II  
~III  
**_

_"Have you ever been so lost? Known the way, and still so lost?"  
_

_**~IV  
~V  
~VI**  
_

Katherine nestled further into her dorm room bed, passive aggressively retaliating against the sun.

With a angered sigh, she reached out to her bookshelf and snatched her phone from on top, checking the time. 8:35 am. She scowled and groaned, burrowing her face into her pillow. After a few calming breaths as she worked herself into content consciousness, Katherine threw the blankets off of her and walked to her closet. Grabbing a towel and her robe, she made her way to the bathroom.

Once her feet made contact with the disturbingly frigid tile floor of the restroom, Katherine dove into the furthest shower stall and hung her robe and towel on the hook on the outside wall.

Steam rose from the stall as Katie allowed the hot, pounding water pellets release the tension of the past week, if only for a few minutes. With the soothing sound of the shower lulling her back to the sleep she just abandoned, Katherine rocked back and forth on her feet slightly, her eyes closing as every muscle in her body relaxed. Could someone really sleep while standing up?

Sighing deeply, Katherine opened her eyes and grabbed a bottle of shampoo and worked the cleansing product into her matted hair. After running through the necessities of bathing, she turned the water off and grabbed her towel, drying her hair before wrapping the towel around her wet body. Tightly tucking the towel within itself, she made her way the fogged up mirrors. With a swipe of her hand, she was greeted with a scene from hospital-based television drama.

Her face was thin, thinner than usual. Yes, her baby fat was gone by the time she was like...seven, so the angles of her rather sculpturesque face were always more defined than other girls', but now she just looked unhealthy. Her skin was a horrible, sickly pale. Her lips were thin and pale as well, with a serious need of ChapStick. And her eyes...well, they were never really in tip-top shape. There was normally some signs of sleep-deprivation with discoloration of the skin under them, but this was ridiculous. The regular was a little bit of gray or purple, but right now it looked like she got into a bar fight.

She knew why, it was no big secret. She had done the math. In a perfect world, she would have gotten 40 hours of sleep while in Sicily. In a normal world, she would have gotten between thirty and thirty-five. In reality, she got fifteen. Maybe.

Sighing, she yanked her toiletries bag from the sink and pulled out her toothbrush.

* * *

"Katherine," Jessica called from down the hall, "I am going out to lunch, would you like to join me?"

Her muffled reply came soon enough. "No thank you."

Jessica sighed and turned to the stairs, working her way down them. Katherine had returned early yesterday morning in the arms of a young man. In introduced himself as Alec, and the crest he wore around his neck told her that he was a member of the Volturi family. The family was the focus of local hearsay, of course. Observant grandparents would tell their grandbabies of the mystery and secretive, yet oh so powerful, congregation. The city of Volterra was one of the safest and securest in all of Italy, with the lowest crime rate the providence has ever had. It had been that way for centuries, ever since the red-eyes claimed this territory as their own. No one knew what or who they were and no one openly questioned it. Ignorance is bliss and the lives of the Volterra citizens were nothing if not blissful. One mustn't bite the hand that more than likely feeds them.

Alec had easily and dazzlingly informed her of the familial problems that Katherine had suffered through, explaining her early return from the holiday. Having met the young woman's parents in early August, all of Jessica's question of the obscure, shy and somewhat foreboding girl standing in the corner of the mixer had been answered. The authoritative figures of the young girl were...putzes, for lack of a better term. Full of themselves, self-centered, pretentious putzes. Jessica considered herself blessed that their daughter seemed to despise these traits as much as she- Jessica- did, as oppose to idealizing and imitating her parents as most developing souls did.

Catching sight of the strangely beautiful young man standing the kitchen, Jessica shook her head. Katherine had not done a thing in the two days she'd been back other than sleep and _barely _eat. Alec and Jessica both had tried to coax her out of her room, but neither were successful.

At the confirmation of her failure, Alec sighed and thanked her for her assistance in the matter before exiting the house. Jessica, herself, felt that the thanks was unnecessary. She loved her girls, and she would do anything to help them. The Volturi family didn't have to get involved to make her care for the girls she watched over.

~8~

At the meager sound of the far gates closing, Katherine peeked out of her curtains with slightly apathetic interest. Jessica was gone and she was alone. Finally.

With a groan of minor pain, Katherine slid from her bed and opened up her window, letting the bitter autumn air bite her skin and fill her darkened room. The curtains were redundant on this day, the cloud covered skyline complimenting her mood. Mood...what was her mood?

_Nothing._

That was all she could think of. Nothing. Her mood was nothing, her thoughts were nothing, her life was nothing. At least right now. It would get better in a few days, maybe even a few hours, but right now, she was nothing. Her mind was blank. Unbelievably blank. It was like a white board after the janitor came in with that special wash and cleaned off all markings. If someone took a snapshot of her thoughts at the moment, it would come up empty. If she was strapped her up to some brainwave reader, the line would be flat. Well, technically, it would be within the Theta and Alpha- 4 to 13- hertz, but now was not the time for technicalities.

Gray light filled each corner of the small room. Soft, acoustic music bounced from her speakers to the bleak walls. Katherine fell to her knees in front of her small bookcase. She was worn out, worn down, and destroyed. Her muscles were sore for no reason, her head was perpetually pounding and everything about her was running on autopilot. She didn't even have control over her own body anymore. Most people didn't, but she always had. And now she doesn't have that anymore. Her shoulders slumped and she scoffed mentally. Hell, she didn't even have her posture any more.

She fell backwards, lying on her cheaply carpeted floor.

"_I know you're busy, I know I'm just one. But you might the only_ _one who sees me, the only one to save me. Why is it so hard? Why can't you just take me? I don't have much to go, before I fade completely."_

Katherine took a labored, shaking breath and rolled onto her stomach. She braced her palms on the floor and pushed up, lifting herself from the floor. Sluggishly, she crawled on all fours to her door, grabbing onto the antique styled knob and pulling herself up.

~8~

Katherine leaned against the marble counter top, her forearms braced against the cold stone. Her fingers- nails chewed to the nubs- were picking at a piece of cinnamon swirl bread. Each time she thought of popping a piece into her mouth, her stomach churned and her throat tightened in protest. She needed to eat, but her body kept telling her no.

With a sigh, she dropped the pebble-sized piece of bread and delicately captured the slim, silver handle of her stirring spoon between her thumb and index finger. Absentmindedly, she stirred her now _cold _chocolate as she racked her brain for an explanation to her strange behavior. No appetite, always sore and the only time she wasn't tired was when she was sleeping- which was often. In the back of her mind, she knew what was wrong. In the back of her mind, she knew exactly what this all added up to. In the back of her mind, she knew the word. But the word, that one word, wouldn't make it's way up front. No, she refused to believe it. Not until she did specific research on the subject.

Katherine tried one more time to eat something. She took a piece of the bread and forced it in between her lips. In the quickest motion she's made in the past two days, she spat the bit of food out.

Her head fell into her palms. _Fuck._

* * *

Limp tendrils brushed Katherine's face as she sat hunched over her desk. She stared at nothing, only her long, thin fingers and chewed up nails. A knock on her door brought her back to the conscious world. The sound of the knock worsened her headache slightly, but she hardly noticed. The door opened and Jessica walked in.

"Get dressed." The native Volterrian demanded. "We're going out."

Katherine looked down at her clothes. A light blue tee shirt and blue and purple plaid pajama pants. Without a sound, she stood up and shuffled to her closet.

Jessica nodded and stepped out, leaving the teenager to dress herself.

The girl selected a pair of curvy fit jeans first. She had bought them just as "curvy" fit became a regular thing, so they weren't very stylish, but they fit and they were comfortable. Next was her favorite sweater. A miracle fabric in her opinion. Light enough to not suffocate her, but heavy enough to drape around her, like a constant hug. It was maroon in color and tight around the waist and arms, without putting her in a strangle hold. She slipped on a white camisole before pulling the sweater over her head. Sighing- aware of the impending pain- Katherine tipped her head down. As if the meninges around her brain weren't swollen already. Ignoring the agony, she shook out her hair and pulled it into a loose bun at the crown of her head.

She flipped her head up right- ignoring the rush and dizziness- and made quick work of her shoes. Well, quick in consideration. She grabbed her wallet and phone and tucked them into her back pockets before leaving the room.

Her mom had texted her yesterday, around noon. The woman had asked about her daughter's well-being. Where was she, was she okay, why did she leave, was she coming back, things like that. A conversation started and Katherine- always one to read between the lines- soon became aware that she wasn't _wanted _back. After bringing this point out, her mother confirmed that her father was less than pleased with their daughter. However, her mother had promised that she understood and supported her daughter, no matter what her husband said. So, at least she wasn't cut off. She still had her mother's "love" and funding. And frankly, she probably cared more about the funding. But the "love" was nice, too.

Katherine shrugged at her thoughts and wisps of hair fell against her forehead as the shorter parts of her bangs came out of the elastic while she jogged down the stairs, keeping her hand wrapped firmly around the handrail. She was still dizzy and seeing spots, but that normally happened when she got a headache.

"Ready to go?" Jessica asked as Katherine descended the stairs into the foyer.

"Mhmm."

Jessica nodded, "Then let's go."

~8~

The two women walked down the streets of the city in silence, each too involved in their own thoughts to try and make conversation.

"Come on." Jessica directed, ushering the younger girl into a boutique. Jessica knew that Katherine liked classic styles with a modern twist. It wasn't hard to figure out. Katherine was a classic girl, no matter how much she tried to hide it. It was no secret to anyone that knew her well enough that Katherine believed in soul mates and true love, regardless of how on guard and cynical she acts. The girl had three favorite items in her room: her stuffed cat she's had forever, a small jewelry box that was her great-grandmother's, and a handwritten book of classic fairy-tales that her...grandfather made her before he died. Simple, meaningful, and classic. Like Katherine. Expect for the simple. That girl was more complex than a Japanese puzzle box.

As the entered the small shop, Jess got the reaction she was hoping for. Katherine's brown eyes lit up and the corners of her mouth tugged into that crooked smile that she hadn't seen in days. Soon enough, that grin broke into an all out smile as Katherine wandered around in amazement, as if she were standing in a vault of gold and she could take as much as she pleased.

The young girl made her way to the clothes and started combing through. She pulled out a coral pink dress with black polka dots and her smile widened. The next thing she lifted from the rack was a white blazer.

She went on like that through the shop, happily picking and choosing items from the racks and shelves.

Jessica sat back, leaning against the far wall, watching her little girl love life again.

* * *

Katherine walked into the game room of the Volturi in her new pastel peach chiffon and silk tank tip and black ruffle skirt. She unbuttoned her coral pink cardigan and tousled her curls.

With a yawn, Katherine stretched out her arms and slid down onto a small couch. Yes, she had been feeling better since Jessica forced her out of her cave and into the impromptu shopping spree, but she was still tired and not nearly as hungry as she should be. She didn't want to eat, although she could eat a little bit, just nothing too filling. No carbs. And, by God, did she love carbs. Or, she use to. That's when you knew something was wrong: when Katherine Jensen didn't want carbs.

The door opened and four vampires walked into the room, one after the other.

"Did you guys just exact justice upon a delinquent vamp?" she asked with a smile and a yawn.

Demetri smiled and Felix shouted "You're damned right we did!" as they veered off to the pool table.

_Is that all those two do?_

When Jane walked past him, Demetri whipped out an arm and hooked it around her waist, pulling her to him and kissing her cheek lightly.

Katherine's eyes widen as she was sure she was about to witness a vampire die. However, she was sorely disappointed.

_Ouch. That sounded bad._

Okay, so Katherine may have been little bit twisted, but Jane's reaction wasn't. One would expect the girl to torture Demetri into oblivion and yet...she only shoved him. Not even a big get-out-of-my-face shove. Just a light little push and a giggle. A freaking giggle. Jane Volturi, one of the most feared vampires on the planet (so Katherine had been told), was giggling.

Dear God. The Mayans were right.

"Don't stare." A smooth voice whispered behind her, "Jane will kill you."

A soft, cold hand gingerly turned her face away from the first sign of the apocalypse to look at a much more pleasing sight.

Alec smiled at her gently, his eyes shining with amusement. "Are you feeling alright?"

"I think I'm going into shock."

Alec laughed, the sound drowning Katherine in a pool of warming honey. And she didn't even like honey that much. But if it was in relation to Alec, it was perfect.

"Ha. Ha." Came Jane's bitterly sarcastic laugh from across the room. Katherine turned around and saw Felix biting back laughter, Demetri smiling with pride and Jane leaning against the pool table, watching the game. When Felix went to hit the cue ball, she snatched it off of the green and threw it at his head. Demetri chuckled and grabbed the smaller vampire's hand, bringing it to his lips.

Katherine turned her attention back to Alec.

"I feel like there was a major plot development that I missed."

Alec chuckled and sat down next to her, spreading his arms on the back of the couch.

"My twin sister and my best friend are now dating." He informed her.

"Hey," Felix shouted, "I thought _I _was your best friend."

Alec laughed and shook his head, "Nope. That would be Demetri."

"It's alright, Felix," Demetri started, "You're _my _best friend."

"Hey!" Alec cried, sitting up and staring at Demetri in awe.

"It's okay, Alec," Katherine told him in mock sympathy, brushing her hand on his arm, "You can be _my _best friend."

Instantaneously, his eyes flashed darkly and a smirk graced his face as he settled back against the couch.

"That'll do." He nodded, leaning in close to her. His forehead was nearly touching her's and his eyes bore into her own. "For now."

Katherine sat stone-still, completely in shock. Her eyes were wide and her mouth hung open slightly. Her heart was pounding in her chest as Alec brushed a loose curl behind her ear. A blush rose to her pale cheeks and she bit the inside of her lower lip.

Off to the side, the three other vampires watched the love birds in delight.

"Plot development, anyone?" Jane asked with a smirk.


	13. The Fighter

_**A/N: I just got an internship for a local Congressional campaign, so updates won't be as frequent as they have been. Just a little heads up there.  
**_

_**Larcian: **Just because you kill the locusts doesn't mean you've ended the plagues lol_

_**HunterRaven:** I feel that the people of Volterra, the natural borns, would be too well aware of the strangeness of the Volturi to fall for dazzling and all lol Also, I've created a guide as a new story, so you can refer to it whenever you get characters mixed up lol I'll finish it soon, but I've put the main ones up**  
**_

_**Stargazer: **I've always found shopping to be very therapeutic lol At least, when I'm not buying with my own money (^_^;) And you're damned right he's making a move lol**  
**_

_**Chapter Song: The Fighter by Gym Class Heroes ft. Ryan Tedder**  
_

_**~I  
~II  
~III**_

_"Give 'em hell. Turn their heads. Gonna live life 'til we're dead. Give me scars, give me pain. Then they'll say of me, say of me, say of me: There goes a fighter."  
_

_**~IV  
~V  
~VI**  
_

Excessive sleeping.

Loss of appetite.

Fatigue.

Loss of interest.

Aches and pains.

"Empty" feelings.

_Well fuck._

Katherine huffed and leaned back in her office chair. She was depressed. Mother of God, not this shit again.

Tears burned behind her eyes and her lips started swelling in anticipation of the storm that was coming. _Fuck fuck fuck, no no no. Please, no. Please, not this._

She brought the heels of her hands up and rubbed her eyes furiously before running frail fingers through her hair. Oh, fuck fuck fuck. Someone. She needed someone to talk to. Who could she talk to? She would talk to Andy, but Andy wasn't Andy anymore. Andy was Alexandria and Alexandria didn't care about her.

Beck, she could call Beck. But Beck wouldn't understand. Nothing against her, she has just never been to such a low place before, so she would have no frame of reference to help.

Who could she talk to?

A thought popped into her head. A desperate thought that she normally would laugh at, but desperate is as desperate does.

Without a second thought, Katherine picked up her phone and went into her contacts.

The electronic mock-ring went off a few times before the person on the other end answered.

"Hello?"

A pathetic sob broke from her lips. "It happened again."

"Katherine?" The voice- now concerned- asked, "Katherine, _what_ happened again?"

She couldn't answer. The words...they...they were in her head, clear as day, but they weren't coming out of her mouth. Her lips wouldn't form, her tongue wouldn't move. Nothing was happening, except strangled sobs.

Consumed by her suffocating desire, yet inability, to speak, Katherine didn't notice when the line went dead. Nor did she notice the black streak run to her dorm house. What she did notice- however- was her bedroom door flying open.

"Katherine?"

Alec shot over to where she sat and kneeled down next to her chair. "Katherine, what happened?" His voice was nearly frantic and dosed in worry.

She didn't respond, she just chocked on air motioned her hanging head towards the laptop screen.

"Depression?" He responded in shock, "You think you're depressed?"

She nodded and chocked once more.

"Why? That's a big leap from feeling a little down, Kitty."

In response, she leaned over the arm of her chair and opened the bottom drawer of her desk, pulling out her journal from last year.

The book wasn't filled with dated entries and "Dear Diary"s, but poems and sketches and short stories. The stories never named names, only using the gender- appropriate pronouns, but it was clear that they all focused on her life.

Alec flipped through the book- petting and kissing a hyperventilating Katherine every now and then- before snapping it shut and picking her up.

He sat on her bed, her on his lap and her head resting on his shoulder as he whispered sweet nothings in her ear and held her.

"You were depressed?" He asked gently after she had calmed down some.

"Mhmm." She confirmed sadly and a slight nod.

"You went to therapy, right?"

She nodded again.

"And now you think you're depressed again?"

"It's like herpes," She told him with a humorless laugh, "You can treat it, and your symptoms can go away. But in times of stress, it'll come back. Without a doubt. It's always there, hiding in the shadows, waiting for it's time to strike. And it's a bastard. It doesn't come at you when you're strong and you can fight back. No, no it let's the thugs of life beat the crap out of you first. Then, when you're weak and broken, it pounces. And some people, some people accept it. Some people let the bastard over take them."

"But not you." Alec said softly.

Katherine chuckled darkly, "No, not me. Never me. I'm quiet and shy and a wallflower, and I'm a killer. The quiet ones are the planners. They're quiet because they're waiting- always waiting. And when the time comes, they're ready. The shy ones are the wise ones. They sit back and watch everyone. They study the interactions of everyone they see in hopes of learning by observation. Because they watch so carefully, they gain knowledge most must live to obtain. And they use this knowledge everyday they go by without getting hurt.

"And the wallflowers, oh, those are the dangerous ones." She told him, "They're like assassins. They're quiet and shy, so they're ready and wise. But they're sneaky. Sneaky little assassins. They move through society without a single interruption. They weave through the fabric of the world like smoke through fire. They stand on the fringes, always seeing, but never being seen."

"And you are all of these." Alec acknowledged, trying to follow her line of thought.

"Yes."

"So how does that help you?"

She smiled and burrowed further into his embrace, "If you see an assassin, do you piss them off? No, of course not. But depression doesn't get that. So, when the assassin is down, depression makes its move. And the weaker ones, they just let themselves fall prey. But not the assassins. No, they're trained to fight, even if they don't know it. So, they fight. And most of the time, they win. But depression doesn't quit. It watches you, stalks you, and waits for you to weaken again."

"But you fight again." Alec guessed.

She nodded. "Yup. And harder. You're fighting for your life, so you fight tooth and nail. The first time you get attacked, you just want to get away. The next time, you want to win. So you fight to win. You fight to kill. You and the bastard fight to the death. You just have to make sure the death isn't your own."

~8~

Alec lay with a sleeping Katherine in her tiny dorm bed, the little human girl snuggled up against him, her sleeping top bunching up around her firm midsection. She had fallen asleep in his arms after her little breakdown earlier and he hadn't had the heart- nor the stomach- to just leave her there to wake up alone.

The sleeping girl took a deep breath and cuddled further against him, intertwining their legs completely. He would be lying if he said he didn't..._enjoy _the feeling of her pressed so fully against his body. Her firm, yet soft body was moving against his slowly as she adjusted her sleeping position. Her strong legs (God, he remembered the erotic feeling of those legs wrapped around him), moved up his own, dangerously close to where his pants were now bulging.

He felt disgusting. He really liked Katherine, really cared about her. Had his heart still been beating, he probably would've had a heart attack when she called him crying. He hated that she was hurting and that she was sick. And still, nothing could kill his sex drive.

Katherine moaned and stretched her back, before tightening her arms around him and nuzzling her face against his neck, a smile on her lips. Alec's heart burst when he felt her smiling lips against his cold skin. He wrapped his arms around her trim waist and held her to him. She made a little noise of happiness and he smiled, tightening his grip.

* * *

"Morning, Kitty."

Katherine opened her eyes. The first thing in her line of sight was her hand, resting against light blue fabric. She looked up and saw Alec smiling lazily at her, brushing his cold hand through her messy hair.

"What time is it?" She asked quietly, still coming out of her sleep.

His smile grew. "Early." He teased.

She smiled and starting unbuttoning his shirt. He stopped playing with her hair and looked at her in confusion.

"I like your shirts. They're soft and silky and feel nice. However, your chest feels nicer." She explained simply, moving his shirt out of the way and reclaiming her spot. Vibrations rumbled through her as he chuckled at her operations. She smiled at his amusement and kissed his icy skin.

Electricity shot through Alec when her warm lips made contact with his chilled body. He shouldn't feel this way, he knew he shouldn't. He should be more sensitive- that's what girls want, isn't it? Sensitive?- and focus more on her and how to make her feel better. He should focus on helping her, not humping her.

But when he took a whiff of the air, more than happy to have a fill of her flowery scent, his concern about his own morals diminished.

Cinnamon.

He smirked. A crying woman he couldn't really handle. But this..._this_ he could handle.

She moan slightly as she snuggled up closer to him, her pulsing center pressed against his thigh as her legs tightened around his own. Alec smiled and starting running his fingers down her smooth, warm skin, down the bumps of her ribs and the strong muscles of her abdomen, across the top of her defined hip and along the barrier that her pajama bottoms had created. A small, nearly unnoticed coo came from between her lips and she pressed herself against him even more than she already was, lazily tracing patterns on his chest with her fingers.

His body tensed when she brushed over his nipple, teasing his already strained hold on reality. In vengeance, Alec pushed his fingers past the elastic waist of her bottoms, sweeping over the thin fabric of her panties. A weak little whimper and a burst of cinnamon were his rewards.

Katherine bit her lip as Alec teased her through fine fabric that covered her most sensitive area. She had no idea why she wanted him so badly. It made no sense, seeing as she was more than likely suffering from depression and that should kill her sex drive. But it didn't. No, nothing stopped the blood pounding through her pelvic region, making her sex swell and throb more and more each and every time Alec passed a finger by, tracing the lines of her panties. She felt a wetness begin to pool, one that she had only felt so extremely two other times. Desperation over taking her, she began to rub herself against him, needing more attention to the nearly dire situation.

A moan built up in her throat as she grinded herself against his leg, the pressure bringing her _just_ enough pleasure to keep from going insane as he continued to tease her. She bit her lip hard and squeezed her eyes shut, focusing solely on the task at hand. She wanted him to touch her, to play with her, to take her again like he ha-

A squeal of surprise broke through her lips when Alec slid a finger under her panties, finally giving her the skin to skin contact she so desperately craved. The finger ran along her, making it's way- slowly- to her swollen clit. Tears sprung to her eyes as she continued to grind against him, her juices all but ruining her panties.

Alec smirked with pride when wetness surrounded his working digit. Her heart was pounding and her breathing was heavy. He could her soft pants gain speed when he slipped the digit inside of her, working her to near hyperventilation.

He slipped in another finger and curled them, teasing her viciously as she cried and squirmed against him, silently begging for him to bring her to the end. Slowly, smoothly, he worked her, fingering the stressed young women to an easy release as her hips rocked into his hand.

Her walls clamped around his fingers and the entire world stilled, every worry and vexation crumbling under the power of sexual release. Her back arched her further against Alec and a meager cry traveled from her lips to his ears, bringing a smile of pride of his lips.

Alec removed his hand from her undergarments and brought it to his mouth, leisurely sucking her essence off of them.

His eyes rolled back when the juices dissolved and mixed with the venom flowing in his mouth. So good. She tasted so _fucking _good. She was delectable by any and all means. His already hard erection stirred with excitement as he continued sucking her off of his fingers, becoming completely consumed with instinctual thoughts. He felt like a caveman. All that was running clearly through his head right now was 'Katherine yummy. Alec want more'.

The thoughts became no less coherent when she crawled onto of him, kissing and sucking and licking his neck while _just _barely rubbing herself against him.

Finally, instinct took over. A viscous growl erupted from his throat as Alec flipped her over and brought his own lips to the soft skin of her delicate neck.

* * *

Amelia and Flora huddled next to air vent on Amelia's bedroom floor, eavesdropping on Kyle and Adam.

"The friend-zone?" Kyle's booming voice echoed through the ventilation shaft.

Adam hurriedly shushed him before continuing, "Yes, alright, and I'd appreciate it if you kept it to yourself. she has no idea that I don't want to be there and I'd rather keep it that way."

"Why?"

"It's better to be the friend than That Creepy Guy."

"Aw, you don't wanna spend quality time getting to know Randal?" Kyle mocked.

"No." Adam replied sternly.

Soon, their voices ceased to bounce through the ducts as the boys made their way outside and Amelia and Flora sat up.

"Katie friend-zoned Adam?" Flora asked, her thick and proud Scottish accent lacing the words.

"I guess," Amelia replied, "I don't blame her. He's kind of weird. Awkward, you know?"

"Yeah, but Katie is awkward, too." Flora pointed out as she walked over the Amy's bed.

"Exactly," Amy said, "You can't have two awkward people in a relationship, it wouldn't work well. You need at least one social butterfly to counteract the repellent of the social leper."

Flora nodded, "Opposites attract and what not."

"Yup," Amelia confirmed, "Hey, shouldn't you be with your family right now? Adam only lives a few blocks away, but you life in a whole 'nother country."

"Yes," Flora said slowly, as though she were speaking with a small child, "One that does not celebrate Thanksgiving."

Amelia's eyes widen in realization. "Oh...wow, I'm stupid."

Flora laughed. "No argument here. Hey, have you heard anything of Alexandria?" Flora never called the girl by the nickname everyone else in the dorm house had used at one time or another. She never did explain to anyone why.

"Nope," Amelia shrugged, "She just kind of dropped off the face of the planet after Jessica had the guidance office switch her house."

Flora nodded, her eyes unfocused and her mind deep in thought. "That's what I've been afraid of..."

* * *

Katherine laughed from her place on the kitchen counter as Alec kissed the "Love Bites" he had given her earlier that morning.

"You know, you really scared me with that." She told him with a chuckle.

" 'Ith 'Ut?" He mumbled against her skin.

She laughed again, "With the whole you attacking my neck thing. Fine for a normal boy. A wee bit concerning for a vampire."

He pulled away from her neck and looked her in the eye, brushing a some of her hair behind her ear. "I am over a thousand years old, Kitty. The last thing you have to worry about is me loosing control."

She looked pensive for a moment before nodding, "Alright, makes sense. Now- and this is just to cover all of the bases-"

"Oh, I thing we've got the bases down pat." He interrupted with a chuckle.

"Shut up," She commanded, "As I was saying: do I have to worry about pregnancy?"

"No." He told her surely.

"You sure?" She questioned, "Because Felix told me about that one guy with the human girl and the kid they had and I'm telling you right now, Alec Volturi: ain't no kid coming in or going out of my body."

He smiled at her reassuringly, "I would never risk putting you through the carrying or birth of a hybrid, first of all. And second of all, it's impossible."

"Why? Why would it be impossible for you and not him?" She pushed.

Alec paused to think of the least embarrassing way to explain it to her. "I'm...infertile...sort of."

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, because I'm sure they had fertility testing for thirteen year old boys back in 800 AD."

He sighed and continued thinking. "Not like that. It's like...is there anyway I can explain this with out it being awkward?"

"Probably not," She told him simply.

He sighed again and began, "You know how the reproductive systems work, right? While women have a set number of...eggs," Had he still had blood, he would have blushing, "Men create new sperm continually."

"Yeah," She nodded, not sure where he was going with it, "That's actually why women get so much more money when they donate an egg- because it's such a bigger sacrifice and not a lot women do it. Whereas, any man who is desperately strapped for cash will rub a couple out and let the clinic put...Oooh..." she said as she finally understood how it worked. "He was a virgin when they conceived, wasn't he?"

Alec smiled and nodded, thankful he wouldn't have to explain anymore of the uncomfortable subject.

"So he still had his bad boys from the day he 'died' and they were just put on ice." She went out, speaking her thoughts, "And you aren't a virgin-"

"Not by a long shot," He laughed.

"-So you already got rid of it." She explained in wonderment.

"A long time ago," He laughed.

She rolled her eyes. "Fuck off."

"I'd rather fuck you." He pointed out simply.

"You did." She told him, "Three times. I'm sore as all hell over here. It's so not happening again. Not anytime soon."

He chuckled at her chastising him, walking over and picking up the plate that was sitting next to her, forgotten.

"Eat." He told her softly, "You're going to need your strength for later." He joked with a wink.

She rolled her eyes, "It's not happening Alec. Not until tomorrow."

He sighed, "Fine. Then, I promise not to actively try and seduce you if you eat some of this. Just a little bit."

Katherine's face scrunched in disgust as she stared at the food on the plate. "I don't want to."

"Katherine, you haven't eaten anything all day. And you've been _very _active."

"I'm not hungry." An alarming roar from her stomach betrayed her.

"Katherine, please." Alec pleaded, "I know you're smart enough to know the truth about what's going on. You're starving, but your brain is playing tricks on you. It's all an illusion. Fight it."

Katherine stared at the food dis-trustingly, as if she were expecting it to jump up and devour her face. She made a small noise of displeasure, but reached out for the food nonetheless.

She tore off a small corner of the waffle and forced the piece between her tight lips, Alec watching her the entire time. With his eyes pushing her, she started to slowly chew the piece, before swallowing it down. She waited for the nausea to kick in, as she was certain it would, but it never did.

Timidly, she tore off a few more small pieces and worked at ingesting them cautiously. Alec's smile widened as she slowly took in about half of the waffle. It wasn't much, compared to what a normal person would eat, but it was practically more than she had eaten in nearly three days. He was proud of her. She was fighting.

"That's my Kitty," He whispered softly, kissing her forehead.

_**A/N: Did I get anyone with that whole 'Alec going for her neck' thing? lol**_


	14. Prelude 12'21

_**A/N: I am so tired...this internship is killing me. But here you are! A new chapter! This really just sets up the next chapter, so...yeah...**_

_**Stargazer:** You damned right he did! :D Wow...that was perverted...I regret that now...whatever, I'm not erasing it._

_**Larcian: **Oh, fabulous plan then lol and don't worry, I'll update. It'll just take a while...  
_

_**HunterRaven: **Yeah, he didn't teleport lol He just ran really really fast. Adam doesn't want it to get back to Katherine that he likes her, ergo: he doesn't want to be in the friendzone, because then she could creeped out by him. And yes, Flora is very, very smart. That will come into serious play later. And no, I am not British lol I just "Love Bite" fits in better with the whole 'vampire' thing lol Cuz, like, biting and all...yeah lol And in reference to an unanswered question in a previous review: No, I'm not really smart. I do a lot of research while I write, which is why it takes me a little while to get a chapter out lol  
_

_**Chapter Song: Prelude 12/21 by AFI**  
_

_**~I  
~II  
~III  
**_

_"This is what I brought you, this you can keep. This is what I brought, you may forget me."  
_

_**~IV  
~V  
~VI**  
_

_Fragile_

_Delicate_

_Frozen in time_

_Sweet blossom, forever petrified_

_Frost brushes still fingers_

_Biting_

_Stinging_

_Bitter glacial storms desecrate _

_Beauty and warmth wither _

_Depart_

_In their place,_

_Silence._

_The silence of death_

_In death, there is silence_

_Not a sound is heard,_

_As soft, fluttering droplets of disease descend from the heavens_

_They kiss the earth_

_Turning all they touch to icy stone._

_In death, there is cold_

_Cutting cold_

_Callous cold_

_Cold the freezes all _

_Fossilizing the world_

_Coating all in fine marble_

_Ice and white blanket the world_

_Sunlight sparkles off diamond like frozen drops_

_ Gleams off the stark layer of snow_

_Not a creature moves_

_Not one breeze blows_

_All is calm_

_All is still_

_In death, there is peace_

Katherine lay back onto the fluffy white snow that covered the hard ground. December was here, a time of rebirth. Soothing cold sunk into her skin, coursed through her body. Her body felt as though it turned to ice, and she enjoyed it. There were no chills, no goose bumps. Just ice. Her lips curved into a pleased smile.

Her fingers-red at the tips and nails slowly growing back from being chewed up a few weeks prior- curled around her leather bound journal. Very rarely did she write in it, but some situations called for it. Writing in small, snow covered field in the middle of forest seemed like such a situation.

Sweet death surrounded her, chilling her to the bone. Her smile continued. Here, she was alone. Here, embraced by the smooth artic frost and kissed by the falling snow flakes, she was at the purest of peace.

* * *

He watched her from his sister's window- his looking out to the forest while her's looked down on the streets of the city.

There were people out by the dozens, being it the holiday season, but he had to troubles finding her and her red hood.

Her hood was up, but her dark brown curls still broke free. Flakes of snow stuck to the ends of the tendrils that brushed just past her shoulders. A black scarf appeared from inside the hood and lay against her body, both sides at perfectly equal length. Alec smiled to himself as he remembered her little obsession. She had gotten comfortable enough around them to let it show through. Hoods had to be right-side in, necklaces and pendants had to fall just right and drawstrings (usually found only on Corin when she wore her hoodies) had to match. And if anything was out of place, she took it upon herself to right it, no questions asked. Most of the guard found it annoying, but Aro was positively delighted when she had forgone physically touching people (after a confrontation with an irked Corin) and stared using her gift to alter these discrepancies. So much so that he would occasionally mess something up here or there just to make her practice more.

Katherine whipped around suddenly, the tails of her scarf flying. Alec followed her line of sight and saw two girls running towards her. Rebecca and...Amy, maybe? He looked back to Katherine, now having full few of her beautiful face.

Her skin was a clean, perfect pale with red tints on her cheeks and nose where the wind had been nipping her. Her lips were more plump than usual- probably from using as much ChapStick as she had. Her brown eyes were devoid of her normal "Earth tones" (_whatever those were)_ eyeshadow, sporting only mascara and snow flakes on her lashes. Divine.

Rebecca and...Abagail? made their way to her, the nameless girl handing Katherine a cardboard coffee cup with _C__C _scribbled on the side. Katie smiled and thanked them, taking a sip of the scolding chocolate beverage.

The three girls delved into a conversation, and Alec focused all his attention on hearing them.

Through the glass and over the dozens of other conversations taking place in the same area, he could pick up small portions of what they were saying.

"...wish I had a SNES."

"...really into that one band...but I don't have any of their CDs..."

"I don't know...thrift store?"

"...home?"

"...with me!"

"Eavesdropping, little brother?"

Alec shot around and saw his sister smirking at him as she made her way to her closet.

"Of course not, dearest sister," he lied with an impish grin, "Just what kind of person do you take me for?"

She popped her head out. "Edward Cullen."

His smile dropped off the face of the earth.

"Well," she began to explain as she exited her closet, "You're in love with a human, you watch her- sometimes when she sleeps- and you love the smell of her blood."

"Yes," he agreed flatly, still not at all amused by his twin's accusation, "But I do not smother her, she is not the only thing in my life- nor I her's- she is not my singer and I have no reservations about changing her."

Jane smiled and nodded, kissing her brother on the forehead. "As long as your hair doesn't look like The Mad Hatter, you will _always _be better than Cullen," She assured him, "Now get out of my room, I have to dress."

Alec smirked, "Got a hot date?"

"Get out!" She shouted, thrusting a finger to the door.

Demetri laughed from down the hall.

* * *

"I want Katherine to be at the ball."

The room fell silent. Disbelieving looks were shot at a contemplating Aro.

"You want...a human..." Athenadora started, "To be in a room full of vampires. Vampires that we can not control if one or two or five of them decide to make a meal of her. Aro, I don't know if you're blissfully naive or just stupid."

"Athena, there will be blood there," Aro pointed out, "Human and animal, as well as food be it the attending hybrids want it."

"Hm, stale versus fresh blood, decisions decisions." She mocked sarcastically. Caius put a calming hand on his wife's shoulder.

"Do we know how strong her gift has become?" Sulpicia inquired, "Perhaps she could be capable of defending herself. At least long enough for someone to intervene."

"She has sparred a few times with Demetri and Afton," Marcus informed his sister-in-law, "But they are her friends and were actually trying to not hurt her. It would be different if a complete stranger tried to feed on her."

"She would be stronger." Caius pointed out, playing Devil's Advocate, "As Alec pointed out on Halloween, she _is _capable of putting up a decent fight."

"But would it be enough?" His wife asked.

"We'll never know if we don't give her the chance." Aro told her her.

"Give her the chance to die?" The blonde shouted, standing from her seat and glaring at the man.

"Alec is in love with her." Marcus said, "Intensely. And Jane, Felix and Demetri are all close to her, as well. They would kill anyone before she got hurt."

Athenadora slumped down into her chair, well aware that the decision had been made.

"Fabulous!" Aro announced excitedly, clapping his hands together and standing up, "Have Chelsea and Hedi been gown shopping yet? They shall take Katherine with them, so she is properly attired for her first ball. Oh, this will be so fantastic..." he drifted off as he wandered out of the room.

Marcus and Caius looked after their "brother" incredulously as the two wives looked at one another.

"Es vos certus vestri maritus est rectus?"[I] Athenadora asked her "sister" in her native tongue.

"Haud."[II] She denied without missing a beat.

* * *

"So what your favorite color?"

"I have none." Katherine told her, her face getting hot. She didn't know Hedi or Chelsea very well, so shopping with them felt weird. "What's the theme of the ball?"

"Winter." Chelsea said with a laugh.

Katherine rolled her eyes. "Fabulous. So whites and light blues and pinks."

"Or deep greens," Hedi said with a smile, "Like evergreens." To compliment her statement, she pulled the perfect "evergreen" dress from the rack.

Made of dark green satin and embellished with crystal rhinestones, the dress hugged at the torso before flaring out into ball-gown skirt. The satin was hiked up and pinned in some random places, giving it an elegant layered looked. A halter neckline and a peephole slit would show off one's...treasures...without flaunting them.

Katherine's eyes widened and her mouth fell to a small 'o' as she quickly fell in love with the dress.

"Please tell me the tulle is black, please tell me the tulle is black." Chelsea begged, checking under the skirt of the dress. "Yes! Now go try that on!" She instructed Hedi as she scurried off somewhere.

Hedi took the instruction gracefully and all but danced into a dressing home.

Katherine smiled to herself and began to unenthusiastically pick through the lines of dresses. Shopping was something you had to be in the mood for, and Katherine really wasn't in the mood.

Chelsea came rushing back, a pair of long, black satin gloves in her hands.

"She in there?" She asked Katherine, nodding to the closed door. Katherine nodded and went back to the dresses.

"Oh my God, those are perfect!"

"I know right!"

Katherine soon drown out the sounds of the two friends and let her mind go into sleep-mode.

"Oh my God."

She paused and looked up, noted that the statement of awe seemed to be pointed in her direction. Two sets of black eyes (contacts were a wonderful things) were looking down at the hanger she had her hand on. Two white lace cap sleeves held the dress.

"Take it out." Hedi instructed.

Katherine complied.

The dress hung in beauty. The bodice of the dress was a sweet-heart neckline and was covered in the same lace of the sleeves. A few rhinestones were placed here or there, sewn into the lace. White satin cinched at the waist and fell into an elegant, flowing skirt.

Katherine's heart stopped.

"We're buying it." Chelsea said with finality.

"I haven't tried it on." Katherine argued halfheartedly.

"We'll get it it tailored." Hedi rushed, grabbing Katherine's arm, "Let's go."

"What about Chelsea's dress?"

"I get mine custom made." She said with a smile, "I'm spoiled."

"You're sneaky." Hedi argued as she pulled Katherine along.

"How so?" The human asked.

"My gift," Chelsea explained with a silly laugh, "I can strength or lessen relationship ties. I strength mine to the Masters so they give me what I want."

Katherine laughed, "Oh, you little brat."

"And proud." Chelsea smiled.

* * *

"Finland?"

Katherine nodded.

"You are spending Christmas in Finland?" Jessica asked once more, just to be clear.

Katherine nodded again.

"Why?"

"Many Nordic tales depict a Saint Nicholas as residing in Finland," She explained easily, "Why not? Seems Christmasy enough."

"Are your parents going?"

"No," Katherine told her, "I'm going with some friends."

"Rebecca, Amelia and Flora?" She inquired hopefully. She had a feeling that she knew _exactly _who her dear Katherine was going to Finland with, and she didn't like it.

Katherine looked away. "No." She said bluntly.

Jess sighed. "Thought not," she muttered under her breath before speaking up. "The Volturi?"

Katherine nodded.

Jessica sighed once more. "Katherine, you're a smart girl. I know you know what your getting into. You know more about the Volturi than I do, that's with out a doubt. I just want to make sure that you're not letting this cloud your judgement. Sometimes first impressions are right, you know."

Katherine nodded once more. She'd been doing a lot of that. "I know. I know the Volturi are dangerous. But you have to trust me on this: it's too late. Even if I wanted to get out of all of this, I couldn't. Aside from a few minor genetic technicalities, I'm as good as a Volturi."

"And you're okay with this?" She asked. Something told her that Katherine's acceptance of the situation would do little to alter it, but she had to ask.

"It's not like it would matter if I weren't." Yup. "But, yes, I am more than alright with what's going on. I truly feel like it's the best choice for me, honestly."

Jessica accepted the answer easily enough. She had seen Katherine with Alec and it looked perfectly natural. Nothing between them was forced, like often is the case with the minorly socially inept Katherine. So maybe the Volturi is where she really did belong. However, there was one thing she still couldn't get pass.

"But _Finland_?"

_**A/N: [I]: Are you sure your husband is straight?**_  
_**[II]: No.**_

_**The lyrics have nothing to do with the chapter, it's much more the title. Ya' know..."Prelude", because this is really just a prelude to the next chapter. Get it? lol  
**_


	15. No Matter What

_**A/N: So...I lied. This isn't the ball. I couldn't get over the writer's block for that event, so I'll tackle it later.**_

_**Guest:** Glad you enjoyed it lol_

_**Stargazer: **Yeah...jokes aren't my thing lol Note how this isn't Romance/Humor lol And I guess we'll find out what happens at the ball next chapter lol  
_

_**HermioneandMarcus: **Well then, let me entertain you :)** Veselye bolʹ** **P****roductions** presents: Chapter 15 lol  
_

_**Chapter Song: No Matter What by Papa Roach  
**_

_**~I  
~II  
~III**  
_

_"No matter what, I got your back. I'll take a bullet for you if it comes to that."  
_

_**~IV  
~V  
~VI**  
_

Andy sighed and planted her feet on the floor, removing herself from... Jason's? lap and walking out the back door.

God, this party was dull.

She worked her pack out of her front pocket, beat it against her palm a few times, and pulled out a cig and lit it up. Red lipstick painted the brown stub as she inhaled her downer and she drowns in a sense of calm.

"That's bad for you." A judgmental, nasally voice said from a few feet away.

"Meh."

She was seriously regretting bringing Lacey here. She thought that, maybe, it would bring her closer to her new roommate, but she was closer to killing her than hugging her. 'Smoking is bad for you', 'I don't get in a car with people I don't know', 'I don't drink alcoholic beverages'. Bleh.

At least Katherine would go with it. She never openly judged anyone that Andy hung out with. She didn't mind the car rides and would simply say things like 'No thanks, I don't smoke' or 'You got any soda' instead of making it blatantly obvious that she saw everyone else as cockroaches.

"Your mom smokes, doesn't she?"

"Mhmm." Andy confirmed, trying to send off the 'I don't want to talk to you' signal. It wasn't working.

"Hm. I'd think you'd know better, then." Lacey mumbled.

"Oh my God, FUCK OFF!" She shouted, and was greeted with a shocked expression before the dark blonde haired girl snuck back into the so-called "party".

Once she was alone, Alexandria fell back against the tan, clay wall. Smoking blew into the air as she sighed loudly, musing over the pitfalls in her life. She wished she could just say 'Fuck it' and give up on her parents, but she couldn't do that. No, not with her little brother still there.

He went to school on base and lived with their mom. Every extended weekend, their dad would start some shit about the eight year old flying back to America for visitation. These discussions usually ended in screeching, then using poor little Bradley as the messenger pigeon for 'Your dad is a stupid asshole' and 'Your mom is desperate cunt'. She couldn't leave him alone in that.

That's one of the reasons she enjoyed having Katherine around so much. She wasn't only a mother to Andy, but to her annoying little bro as well. At that young of an age, Bradley needed stability in his life, as well as someone to look up to. Their parents weren't that, and Andy prayed that _she _wasn't one he looked up to, so Katherine was. And that was good. Katherine was definitely someone to look up to. She may not believe that she's perfect, but Andy does. In Andy's mind, Katherine was a goddamned superhero.

* * *

"I hate driving in snow." Jessica hissed as the car skidded one more time.

"Turn off the ABS?" Becky suggested as she discretely tightened her grip on her seat.

Jessica didn't reply, she just focused on the dark, snowy road ahead of her, muttering curses about the local public transport and how dare they turn off during a snowstorm.

"So have you heard anything from Andy?" Amelia asked Becky from the backseat. It was a horribly kept and well-known secret that Rebecca was still talking to Andy, never having been able to hold a grudge.

"She misses Katherine." Becky told her, "A lot. I knew she would. You don't get over a friendship like their's. I bet Katie misses her, too."

"Proba-"

"SHIT!" Jessica screeched as her tires bumped against the sidewalk curb. She took a few deep breathes before putting her car in reverse and pulling away.

Becky and Amelia sunk lower into their seats.

~8~

Katherine examined herself in Rebecca's full-length mirror.

"I am fucking _hot._" She said confidently, a bold smile on her face and tenacious gleam in her eyes.

"I'd do you."

She shot Felix's reflection a look from the mirror.

"What? I would. Not saying I _will_, only that I _would._" He defended smoothly as she walked pass him and out the bedroom door.

"Is that your dress for the holiday ball?" He asked as he followed her down the hall.

"Yup," She confirmed simply, "Hey, why do they call it a 'holiday' ball? They're really old, right? Old people aren't really into the PC stuff. At least in my experience."

"They know a secret." He told her, distinctively vague.

She rolled her eyes as she opened her own door. "What secret?" She asked, playing along.

"THE secret." He told her mockingly while flashing her a wide, toothy grin.

She smiled patiently- as she would with Alexa and Johnathan- and gently tugged on his hair. "You're _annoying_ me."

He laughed at her enduringly aggravated tone and sat on her bed, bracing his elbows on his knees and leaning closer to where she stood at her desk.

"What is the _one _secret that all of mankind wishes they knew? That people base their lives off of? That your world leaders start wars over?"

He watched her body freeze as the realization hit her.

"BC, baby." He said, confirming the suspicions he knew she had.

She turned and stared at him in awe. "So they were..."

"There for it all. Birth to death. And...rebirth."

"So they know what really happened?" She asked in excitement, slightly bouncing on the balls of her bare feet.

Felix chuckled and sat up. "Yes, yes they do. But don't get your hopes up, they won't tell anyone."

"Why not?" She asked, crestfallen.

He shrugged.

"I don't know. I guess it's because of how much power it holds over us. Even being more advanced than humans, we do share their major weaknesses. The desire for knowledge, protection, love...all of which can and often are found in religious beliefs and the belief in Jesus Christ. Our religious beliefs are our fundamental beliefs, in a way. Be you Atheist, Catholic, Jewish or even Buddhist, you can't tell me that knowing the absolute truth behind Jesus Christ wouldn't have a profound impact on your life."

She nodded in understanding. "They don't want to infringe upon someone's basic right to draw their own conclusions and, ultimately, form their own opinions and beliefs. Greatly wise. Do the other ancient ones- The Romans, or whatever- do they follow this as well?"

"Romanians, and I can't say that I've ever had the chance to ask." He told her, "But they don't go around telling people."

"Close your eyes," Katherine commanded as she began to change into her pajamas, "Do you think they would tell me if I asked?"

"I don't think you'll ever meet them," He told her honestly as he pressed a large hand over his eyes, "And if you do, it probably wouldn't be under the best circumstances."

She sighed as she pulled her large, red, cowl-neck, cable-knit sweater over her messy hair. "You're good." She told Felix as she started brushing out the knots in her curls.

"Why are you brushing your hair before you go to bed?"

"So it's easier to handle in the morning," She told him s she racked the brush through the tendrils, turning her curls into bouncy waves. A flash of light bounced off of her small mirror and shone against her brown eyes.

"Thank God," She muttered to herself, "That took forever."

Felix peeked out of the window and saw Jessica's car creeping up the snowy drive. "Oh yeah," He laughed, "Demetri told me about them. Apparently your RA was having a hell of a time trying to drive in the snow."

"It took them an hour to do a twenty minute drive," She replied, "I kind of figured. I also figured they were dead, but then I thought that just _maybe _one of you guys would tell me if that happened."

"Maybe that's why I was here?" He suggested jokingly, "Did you ever think of that?"

She scoffed and rolled her eyes, "Please, if that _did _happen, they wouldn't send you. They'd probably send Demetri, he seems the most emotionally in-touch. Now leave. Jessica is probably already frazzled, I don't need her freaking out at one of the Volturi- the most intimidating- being here. Shoo."

"Oh, the natives," He endearingly quipped as he made his way out of the door, "So distrusting."

"Mhmm." She sounded off absentmindedly as she made her way around her room. She hung up her dress, powered down her laptop, closed her heating vent and opened her window. A little crazy, considering the incoming snowstorm, but necessary. She hated a stuffy room, and she had no fan. This was what she had to do to get some air flow. Or open her door, but in this house, that was even _crazier._

As the cold air started circulating through her tiny dorm room, Katherine plugged her earphones into the jack on her phone, turned on her music, and snuggled into bed.

* * *

A loud mechanical symphony interrupted her music and blasted through her earphones, causing Katherine to jolt awake.

She recognized the tone almost immediately. She had set it for Andy.

_Guess I never got around to erasing her number._

She shrugged it off and unplugged her earphones before answering the late-night call.

"Hello?"

"Katie..."

She rolled her eyes. God, Andy sounded pathetic. "Andy..." she mimicked.

"I'm...lost..."

"Lost where?" She asked, not trying to hide her annoyance. It was two in the morning and the bitch calls her crying. What the hell happened? Did one of her boy toys dump her? She always hated when that happened.

"I...I don't know...I think I'm on the interstate..."

Katherine snapped out of her anger mental rambling. "Interstate?"

Andy sniffled. "Yeah. I can't really see, though. It's too snowy."

"Andy, where were you before you got lost?" She was in momma bear mode. Nobody should be out on the interstate this late, much less in this weather. She'd take Jessica's car- regardless of how illegal it was- go pick Andy up and bring her back here for the night. They'll figure the rest out once the sun rises.

"That, uh, frat house. The one we made fun of all of the time. There was a party, and, and it was really lame..." She let out a breathy laugh before continuing on her pointless rambles, "My lips hurt..."

"That's because it's freezing out with strong winds," Katherine told her as she laced up her snow boats, "What are you wearing?"

"Uh, jeans...and my sneakers...and my hoodie..."

"The thin one?"

"Yeah."

Katherine sighed and grabbed her giant, heavy and warm wool sweater. "Alright, zip up, use your hood, keep your hands close to your body. Which way were you heading when you left the house?"

"Uh, I think I'm near La Serra... At least, that's what the last sign said."

"Alright. You're on the SS68?"

"Yup."

"Okay, I'll be there in a few minutes. Hang tight and keep moving, it keeps your body warm."

She hung up her phone and dashed out of her room. When she was downstairs, she grabbed two hats, a scarf and two pairs of gloves from the pile of winter accessories they all shared. Leaving a quick and vague note, Katherine grabbed Jessica's car keys off of the counter top and made her way to the garage.

~8~

Demetri went to find his closest Master. Which was Caius. Glorious.

"Sir." He called out to the white-haired vampire down the hall. The one in question paused and waited for Demetri to catch up. It didn't take long.

"Katherine has left."

A flash of alarm shot through the ancient vampire's eyes as he contemplated what that bit of information could mean. "Left _where?_"

"She seems to be traveling down the SS68, sir."

"By foot?" He asked in shock. Surely the human couldn't be so ridiculous.

"Car, sir." Demetri told him, much to his relief, "I think she may have taken Jessica's."

"Jessica?"

"The adult who is in-charge of Katherine's dorm house, sir."

Caius sighed. "Well, she's do a bang-up job, isn't she? Katherine's not old enough to legally drive yet, is she?"

"No sir. Here, the legal driving age is 18 years old. In her home country of America, it's 16. She's only thirteen."

"It must be an emergency," a dull voice sounded off as Marcus entered the hallway, "Young Katherine is far too wise to attempt such a task as driving a storm that would render even the most seasoned person incompetent."

"Now would be a good time to see how well she handles herself in dangers situations..." Caius mused out loud. "Demetri, discretely follow her. Keep your distance, intervene if needed, and keep watch. I want to know how well she handles this."

"The supposed emergency or the driving, sir?" He asked, needing clarification to effectively accomplish his assignment.

"Both." Marcus told him simply.

He nodded once. "Very well."

Once the younger vampire had left them, Marcus turned to his brother.

"You adore Katherine."

"She restores some of my faith in modern society," Caius told him as they started walking, "You just don't see character like her's anymore. Not in the time of protecting children from world. It's nice to meet someone so young, yet so wise. I can't remember the last time I did."

"Sulpicia." Marcus told him with the ghost of a smile, "You felt the same thing after meeting her once or twice. A connection, that of siblings. It took you years to develop one with me, even longer with Aro. But only days with Sulpicia- a human at the time. It's the same thing with Katherine. She's like your kin, be it sister or child, I can not yet decipher."

Caius scoffed. "Child. That's rich."

Marcus raised his eyebrows in a rare moment of amusement. "Well, I have always wondered what you and Athenadora would be like as parents. I have the sneaking suspicion that I may finally get the chance to observe such a phenomenon."

"What, are we adopting a puppy?" Athenadora called out from behind the thick, wooden doors Caius and Marcus were now standing in front of.

"Oh my Gods, can we?" Sulpicia asked with excitement.

"No." Aro denounced loudly right as his brothers walked in the room. "We are not getting a dog."

Sulpicia rolled her eyes at her husband. "It's not a _dog_, Aro, it's a puppy."

"That will eventually grow into a dog." Marcus told her as he and Caius took their seats at the paper and folder filled table.

"Not if you bite it." Athenadora remarked offhandedly.

Sulpicia's face brightened. "Vampire puppy!"

"No." All three men prohibited- rather loudly. Sulpicia pouted dramatically and sunk back into her chair.

Athenadora looked at her red-haired counterpart slumped in her seat. "This is why_ we're_ not in charge."

* * *

The car drove down the desolate, snow covered road, the wipers going crazy and the high-beams on. She knew that it was a bad idea to drive in bad weather with high beams, but it didn't seem to bother her sight and she needed to find Alexandria.

The snowstorm turned into a near blizzard a few minutes ago and it was pissing her off. she hardly knew how to drive in _good _weather, much less this crap. However, somebody needed her help. And she never left someone hanging.

As she was considering what to do with Andy once they got back to the house, Katherine saw a black hoodie walking along the side of the road. She honked the car horn twice and the hoodie turned around. A frightened and worn Andy jogged her way to the car.

The second she sat down, Katherine tossed her the wool sweater, hat, gloves and scarf.

"Put them on," She commanded as the fidgeting fourteen year old complied, "You need to warm up." Once she was bundled up and had the vents of the car blasting warm air in her face, Katherine asked Andy what the hell had happened.

"I...uh...I don't really know..." She answered, her voice dazed and confused.

Katherine shot her a disappointed look. "Andy, are you high?"

She shook her head- rather sloppily- and continued trying to explain. "No...not, not, like...I mean, like...I didn't _want _to get...but, like...I think they, like...my drink...or something..."

"You think they slipped something in your drink?"

"Mhmm." She confirmed, nodded her head once again.

Katherine sighed. _Alright, forget home. Hospital it is._

"Andy?"

"Hm?"

"Do you have any reason to believe that they...did something to you? Something..._else, _I mean?"

The car was silent. The only answer Katherine got was the dead look in her once-best friend's eyes.

_Definitely hospital._

* * *

Katherine rested her heavy head against the smooth wall of the local hospital, waiting in a polyester chair outside of the room they took Andy into. Katherine had asked the girl if she wanted someone in there with her.

_"It's going to be bad enough having a professional in the room with my legs in stir ups and my couchie on display. I don't need you there to make it more uncomfortable."_

Valid reasoning. Or as valid as a drug riddled potential rape victim could be expected to produce.

The door opened and the doctor walked out, the remnants of the rape kit in tow. She looked up at him in question- begging for answers she already knew.

"The bruising is consistent with sexual assault." He told her in a thick Italian accent, "The DNA we found will be tested and reported to the police, who will contact her about pressing charges."

"Send it to the nearest Untied States military base." She directed, "I know all about the troubles Italy has with its rape laws. She is an American citizen, she knows the American brand of justice, so I want our system to handle it if she so chooses to press charges. You can send a copy to _la polizia _if only for them to have it on file. But the investigation will be handled by our justice system."

"Ottimo."[I] He nodded, "You are aware of the possible jurisdiction problems, giusto?"[II]

"That's for the police to handle." She told him simply, before walking pass him and into her friend's room.

It was an eerie room. The tiles were from the thirty some-odd years ago and the lighting was very florescent and even flickering every now and then. She felt like Micheal Meyers was going to walk in at any moment. The diagrams of fetuses on the wall didn't help either.

Dispelling her irrational fears, Katherine walked over the the bed and sat in a neighboring chair. Alexandria turned to her.

"'Sup dude?"

"Nothin' much." Katherine remarked sarcastically, "Just chillin' here. You?"

"Hangin' out, you know?"

She nodded. "You got yourself a nice IV there."

Andy smiled, "You like? I just got it. It's Fendi."

Katherine chuckled. "It's gorgeous. But is it functional?"

"It's "cleansing my system" from whatever got slipped in my drink/"

"Right, right, that's good."

"Mhmm." She agreed, glancing up at the elevated television. "You know what I wanna do?"

"What's that?"

"I wanna watch a movie."

Katherine laughed. "Which one?"

"Um..._The Notebook_?"

Katie made a disgusted face, "What, do you want to induce vomiting or something?"

Andy smiled at her friend. "I need a good a laugh."

She sighed dramatically, "Fiiiine. I guess we can watch the laxative."

Andy smiled brightly. "Coolio. Now, when the hell can we leave this place? I feel like that demon from _Paranormal Activity _is looming around."


	16. Invisible

_**A/N: Hi.**_

_**Stargazer: **Don't watch and don't watch :) Paranormal Activity really wasn't worth the hype IMO and -obviously- I don't recommend The Notebook lol And I know putting Andy through that may seem like a bit much, but I've always seen Andy as one of those people that needs to hit rock bottom before she can start climbing back up.**  
**_

_**Dreamy:** Well here you are :)**  
**_

_**Some people in this chapter may seem a little OOC, but hold out. It will be explained in the next chapter.  
**_

_**A please note, this story takes place in 2012. That's six years after the events of Breaking Dawn.  
**_

_**Chapter Song: Invisible by Skylar Grey  
**_

_**~I  
~II  
~III **_

_"Everyday I try to look my best, even though inside I'm such a mess. Why do I always feel invisible? Invisible."  
_

_**~IV  
~V  
~VI**  
_

Katherine shifted in her plane seat. First class or not, she hated plane rides. She had no idea why, seeing as she wasn't afraid of heights and had no beef with any other type of transportation. But it didn't matter, she just _hated_ planes. They always put her in a bad mood. She was the biggest grouch in the world after she got off a plane; every little thing would piss her off. The slowly dying Super Ego let out a silent prayer for whomever would be the unlucky soul to set off the stewing and hormonal teenage girl.

* * *

"I love how they got _humans_ to do it." Jane laughed softly as she gazed down at all of the humans scrabbling around the courtyard of the Volturi's Finland home. Rarely did they use it for anything more than a get-away for the Volturi and/or friends _of_ the Volturi, but that's why the Masters had decided on it for the location of the ball. Ever since the almost- uprising a few years back, they had been very careful about who they let in the palace- not wanting a potential enemy snooping around their home. Yet here, they still had the comfort of a "home field" advantage, the privacy a large gathering of vampires would need, and the extravagance they had all come to love.

"Would you rather _we _be doing it?" Demetri asked with a chuckle, hiding the shiver he got at the thought of bearing the brunt of Sulpicia- who got especially crazy when came to things like this.

When the young lady didn't respond, Demetri looked down to her. Her face was scrunched up- as it often was. But this wasn't in anger or annoyance. No, this was much less...dangerous. She looked confused.

"Hey," He said softly, nudging her shoulder slightly, "What's on your mind?"

She sighed. "I don't know. I...I just keep getting the feeling that something bad is going to happen."

He laughed, "What? Are you turning into Alice Cullen or something? Cuz you know, Aro would love you if you were also psychic."

Jane rolled her eyes, "Aro already loves me and no, I'm not psychic. I think Alec is going to muck something up."

"That's supportive."

"I'm serious," She said, "It's like that stupid twin telepathy thing. He knows when I'm going to screw up and I know when he's going to screw up."

Demetri nodded, "So are you going to tell him?"

"God no," She scoffed, "Alec and I are more alike than you think. Would you tell me that I was bound to fuck something up?"

"Only if I had a death wish."

"Exactly." She smiled, "Alec is a big boy, whatever he screws up, he can fix it."

~8~

"So have you told your parents?"

"You're kidding, right?"

Katherine adjusted the phone between her shoulder and her ear and she grabbed her suitcase off of the airport carousel.

"I don't know, am I?"

"You better be," Andy scolded over the phone, "I don't even want to think about how my parents would react if they found out."

"I want to think that they'd be upset mostly about the party, but...I honestly believe they'd get pissed at you for getting raped."

"Exactly! They're horrible people! I mean, I can take responsibility when I need to. I shouldn't have gone to the party and I shouldn't have left my drink unattended. That's my fault. I fucked up and put myself in a bad situation and I accept that. But they would put _every__thing _on me. Like, they would blame me for the guy having a penis to rape me with!"

"On a side note," Katherine diverted as she weaved in and out of the crowds of travelers, "I'm amazed that you're taking this so well."

"Hey, what's taking it badly going to do for me? Send me into a spiral of self-loathing, that's what. Why should I cry over spilled milk?"

"What's done is done and it can't be undone." Katherine offered, "You just gotta pick up and move on."

"Pretty much, dude. Hey, you know how my parents have been sending me to therapy?"

Katherine paused. "Uh...no."

"Oh...yeah...the started after they found out I switched dorm houses. Anyway, would my therapist be obligated to tell my parents if I told him?"

"In general, therapists aren't allowed to expose what is spoken of in session unless they feel you are a danger to yourself or others. But a lot of therapists take that to the extreme and tell parents almost everything that is talked about. I've never met your therapist, so I wouldn't know how he would react."

Andy sighed, "I don't know, I guess I'll go by ear. Anyway, I got to go. My next session is in a few minutes."

"Alright dude, good luck."

"Mhmm. Have fun at your ball." She laughed.

"Oh, shove it." Katherine said jokingly, rolling her eyes and ending the call. She had finally made her way to the lobby of the airport and scanned for one of her vampiric friends.

"Boo."

The curly haired human jumped in shock and spun around. Smiling vangs created her.

"Hi." Hedi greeted, leading Katherine out of the airport, "How was your flight?"

"Dreadful." Katherine answered truthfully. "I hate flying."

"Why?"

"I don't know," the small human shrugged, "It's just such a fucking hassle."

"Eh, I don't know, I've never minded it."

Katherine scoffed, "Yeah, private jets tend to make flying a lot easier."

"Hey, we offered-"

"I know, I know," Katherine said, holding up her free hand, "But I feel bad enough about the First Class. An entire private jet for one person? That's just too much."

Hedi laughed, "Oh, you silly little human. Immense lavishness is something you're going to have to get use to if you plan on spending the rest of your days with the Volturi."

"I've never been a millionaire, but I know I'd be just darling at it." Katherine quoted in a fake British accent.

Hedi gave her a confused look.

"Dorothy Parker..." Katherine explained, "20th century American author...famous wit...Academy Award winner before she was blacklisted for her left-wing political views..."

Hedi still looked confused.

"Wait...if she was American, why did you give her a British accent?"

"Because it sounded more fancy..." Katherine admitted with a small smile.

Hedi rolled her eyes. "Silly little human."

* * *

Katherine was lolled out of her sleep by soft, cool hands massaging her back.

"You have to wake up now, Kitty." The warm, tender voice of her... boyfriend...thingy whispered into her ear. She groaned in annoyance and slipped her head under one of the pillows. Alec laughed quietly and kissed her exposed neck.

After a minute or two, it became clear to Katherine that he wasn't going to leave her alone. Defeated, she sat up in her bed and looked at the grandfather clock in the corner of the stone room. The ball was in two and half hours.

"I don't understand why it takes girls so long to get ready." Alec admitted, following her line of sight and looking at the clock as well.

"Neither do I," She told him, getting out of bed and walking to the bathroom door, "But it does. The road to beauty is a long one."

"But why make the journey when you're _already_ beautiful?"

Katherine rolled her eyes and gave him a dead-pan look. "Obvious flattery is obvious." He smiled at her.

"Besides," She said, "I most definitely have to take the extra steps. I'm the only human guest to a ball that is going to be nothing but other-worldly gorgeous people. I already have an inferiority complex just around you people daily."

Alec shrugged, "Well, in all honesty, you _are_. From a purely scientific stand point, you- a human- are inferior to us- vampires."

"Exactly!" She shouted in agreement, "Which begs the question: why the hell am I here?"

"Because Aro wants to show off his new toy." Alec told her simply.

"Okay, okay," She offered, "But say you got a bike for Christmas- assembly required. Do you show it off to your friends when it's still in pieces or after it's all pretty and put together?"

Alec just looked at her. "I never got a bike for Christmas."

"Oh my God, you get the point." She shouted, before calming down into a smile. "Did they even have the _wheel _when you were a kid?"

Alec rolled his eyes, "Yes, you little smart ass, we had wheels. Now go get ready." He shooed her laughing ass off into the bathroom.

* * *

A small orchestra- made up of vampires and humans from vampire friendly families- played very holiday-esque music as vampires and hybrids laughed and danced and enjoyed themselves.

Katherine watched them all be jolly from her place, sitting in the stone windowsill. Fresh Finland snowfall coated the perfectly decorated courtyard and gave the more playful of the attendees ammo for the ensuing snowball fight. Katherine smiled, even though she couldn't really see the vampire-speed fight.

She chuckled to herself when an unsuspecting Asim- a friend of Demetri's that had been brought up and introduced to her earlier- got whacked in the face. Emmett Cullen had out right laughed, which earned him a tackle. His wife- Rosalie- seemed less than pleased at the ruining of his suit.

All across the vast courtyard she could see her friends interact with their friends. Demetri and Felix were battling in a mighty snow war, Jane was talking and laughing with the two fifteen year olds, Bolton and Ashley, and Heidi was gossiping with Rosalie, Makenna and Yvette. Caius and Athenadora were discussing some sure-to-be twisted things with their friends- Fausta, Cyrus and Theon- and Aro and Marcus appeared to be having a rather lighthearted conversation with Carlisle and Garret while Sulpicia entertained their mates: Esme and Kate. All of these people have been brought up to Katherine in her little hide out. Everyone had made a point to introduce her to some of the people in their lives. Except Alec.

Off to the side of the festivities was a small group of vamps. Maybe a hybrid- she wasn't really sure. But she saw them, saw them laughing and talking and having a merry time. And out of all of these people, who were very clearly good friends, she could only name one. Alec. She couldn't name the possible newly- converted vegetarian with the orange colored eyes, the potential hybrid or the insanely beautiful young woman that seemed to have a thing for flirting with Alec. Touching his arm, holding his hand, giggling at all of his jokes. Slut.

The girl laughed once more and smiled a bright, perfect, Crest 3D White commercial smile up at Alec, who happily smiled back with sparkling red eyes.

Katherine sighed and stepped onto the cold, stone floor. With quick motions, she made her way onto her bed and opened up her suitcase. She pulled out a pair of dark brown corduroy pants and a heavy, long sleeved grey shirt. She was sick of this ball.

She stripped from her gorgeous white gown and quickly changed into her basic wardrobe, adding gloves and a scarf. Slipping her feet into her winter boots, she tucked the bottoms of her pants in, grabbed her music earmuffs and slid into her red capelet. Briskly and silently, she flitted out of the castle and into the unfamiliar territory of a Finnish wild and winter.

~8~

Marcus gaze quickly landed on the now empty window sill.

Aro noticed.

"What is it, Brother?"

"Katherine's ties to Alec...they've been severed."

Carlisle and Garret took note.

"You mean like what Chelsea can do?" Carlisle asked, discretely looking through the window for the young woman he had met earlier that night.

"Similar, yes, but I don't think Chelsea did this..."

"Maybe _she_ did." Garrett offered, looking towards the image of a young vampire wrapping her arms around Alec.

"Anelise." Aro noted, "A particular favorite of Alec's."

"In his single days." Garrett finished, "Kate said that Rosalie heard from Heidi that Alec and Katherine were a little more friendly than most."

"Looks like he's having a hard time letting go." Carlisle noticed as Alec ran a hand down Anelise's back.

"Katherine didn't." Marcus pointed out in concern, "Every tie she has to Alec has been cut. He is nothing to her."

"Is that even possible?" Garrett asked.

"Only for the most controlled of people." Marcus told him, "It happens with Caius and Athena at times. One of them will mess up particularly bad and the other with cut them off. The ties come back eventually, but they can be cut in an instant."

"A defense mechanism, to keep from getting hurt worse than they already were." Carlisle offered.

"Yes," Marcus confirmed, "Quite ingenious, really. Although getting hurt is part of life, some have difficulty handling it. Being able to control something as uncontrollable as love is an incredible feat."

"That doesn't mean it's healthy." Garrett challenged.

"He never said it was." Carlisle pointed out, "He just said it was incredible, which it is."

"Katherine is an incredible girl," Aro said, "It's been quite some time since I've come across a soul like her own. It's refreshing."

"What are you going to do about her and Alec?" Carlisle asked.

Aro shrugged. "Nothing, really. we've made it a point not to get too involved in the Guard's personal lives. History teaches us that it usually doesn't end well."

Garrett chuckled slightly, which earned his some confused looks.

"I'm sorry," He apologized, "It just amuses me that- for you- ancient history was, at one point, your current events."

* * *

Snow crunched under the thick soles of her boots as Katherine continued walking. She had gotten lost a while ago, but she didn't stop moving. Sometimes the only way to find yourself was to lose yourself.

Beats emanated from her ear muffs as smooth songs of inferiority flowed into her blood.

Dry tear stains ran from her brown eyes to behind the scarf that covered half of her face as she hummed with the song, singing the lyrics in her mind.

"_Here inside...my quiet heart...you cannot hear...my cries for help."_

A sad chuckled reverberated through her throat. Her life could be worse, it really could. Look at Andy's life, for example. Right now, Andy had the hold on dysfunctional, tragic life. All that was happening in Katherine's world was a fight with a parents and a boyfriend who wasn't even really cheating on her, so who cares about her her pathetic little sob story?

No one. And no one should. No one should care about her life. Why should they, when she just took it for granted? All she did was bitch about how bad her life was, when she actually had a pretty fabulous one. So what the hell did anyone else care about her so called "problems"? They didn't, and that was good. They shouldn't. They shouldn't care about a life that is taken for granted.

A thought came into her head at that moment. Just a passing thought. An minor observation, if you will.

When she was younger, if her parents thought she was taking something- like Barbies or her favorite food or the computer- for granted, they would take it away. They would say that it wasn't a natural born right to have whatever they took from her. They would say that if she couldn't appreciate it, she didn't deserve it. Whatever she took advantage of would be taken away.

The thought was filed in the back of her mind as she continued to wander through the Finnish woods, tucking her hands further into her pockets as another gust of wind battered her. Her eyes squeezed shut and her lungs burned in pain as the cold air broke through the barrier of her scarf and made it's way into her body. The sun was setting now, and it would be dark soon. She wondered if she would be able to find her way back to the castle. She probably would- she was pretty good at getting out of being lost. But what if she couldn't? They'd send Demetri to get her, more than likely. But what if they didn't?

Honestly, would they even notice she was gone in time? The party was bound to last well into the night, but would she? There were so many other heartbeats there from hybrids and the hired hands, would they really notice the absence of one? No. No, they wouldn't.

The clear sky above her started turning a dark grey as the night descended quickly. Katherine turned on her heels and started making her way back the way she came, hoping to follow her foot prints back to home base.

Wrapped in her own mind, she didn't notice something. Something that would have done her good to notice.

About 25 meters above her, hidden in a Scots Fir, was a pair of red eyes.

But Katherine didn't notice. All she noticed was the suffocating feeling of inferiority. Of inadequacy. All she noticed was the feeling that she was drowning in her own nothingness. That she was one of 7.6 billion people and that she met nothing. That she could freeze to death on this very night and no one- not her best friend, not her boyfriend, and definitely not her parents- would be greatly affected. She made no impact on the world around her. She was replaceable. Expendable. She was nothing of importance.

She was invisible.


	17. Good Enough

_**A/N: Hi! This chapter is 4,458 words! My fingers hate me! Wooh! :D**_

_**Larcian: **I think a lot of us wanna screw Alec, if you catch my drift ;)**  
**_

_**Stargazer: **Yes, she loved that she was allowed to hide away but was also- obviously- upset at not being seen. Teenage girls, what are ya gonna do? And Alec is a stupid *beep* lol Teenage boys! They're even worse!**  
**_

_**Marla Franca: **Well color me flattered (#^.^#) I'm glad you enjoy my creation so much :3**  
**_

_**Luver:** Boom! Update! Not exactly "soon", but what the fudge, it's long lol**  
**_

_**MarielleMonster: **Once again, flattered (^^) I have no problem with it what so ever, but I would love to know which part it was. Chapter 13 was the one about depression, right?**  
**_

_**Chapter Song: Good Enough by Evanescence**  
_

_**~I  
~II  
~III  
**_

_"I feel good enough. It's been such a long time coming, but I feel good."_

_**~IV  
~V  
~VI**  
_

Alec sat at one the stone patio tables with Vanessa, Bain and Carry.

"But I wanna meet her _tonight."_ Carry- a 30 year old, perpetually 17 year old, hybrid- pouted. Alec just laughed.

"Seriously, you're being stupid," Vanessa scolded, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring at him.

"Look, she's _his _mate and he will introduce us to her when he pleases." At least Bain had his back.

"Fine, I get that," Vanessa said, sitting up and still glaring at him, "But I want to know _why_ you refuse to introduce us to her tonight. And the reason better be good."

Alec sighed and sat back, thinking over his words. "Well…the way I see it…she's met a lot of people tonight, yes? Well, while these people are obviously important to the individuals that introduced her to them, they are all just faces to her. They mean nothing. Because all of you play important roles in my life, I want her to remember you, to know you for the people you are and not just the names you have. If she meets you tonight, you'll just blend will everyone else she met tonight and I don't want you guys to blend."

When he had finished his explanation, Alec looked up at his friends to see how it landed.

Carry was shining at being considered so important by such a "superior being" as a Volturi Guard member. Though she hid it well, it was clear to those who knew her that she felt inferior to vampires and even humans- never fitting in with either. She had met a few other hybrids in the past six years since more and more starting coming out in the open, but she found that she hadn't liked their personalities. So even with her own kind, she felt out of place. As things progressed, she eventually found Alec's old friend, Bain: King of Misfit Toys. She and Bain became close, and eventually her and Alec as well. Alec was more than proud to be her friend. He could feel the sense of validation radiate from her whenever he- a highly regarded and powerful vampire- treated her like an equal.

Bain just rolled his eyes at Alec's heartfelt words. Bain was a rather strange vampire, born with – what many consider to be- a curse. All blood smelt and tasted the same to him. Good, but the same. This met that he was as easily sated with animal blood as with human, so he had quiet the diverse diet. Aro was fascinated by it.

Vanessa just looked at him, a twisted and amused gleam in her eyes. Her lips curved into a smirk. "Love has made you a puss, man." She taunted.

Bain cracked up and Carry gasped, smacking the other girl on the shoulder. "Shut up!" She squeaked.

Alec just chuckled and shook his head. Yes, he had changed quiet a lot since falling for someone, but isn't that the point of being in love? Growing as a person? Bettering yourself to be everything you could be for the person you loved? Katherine was a confused thirteen year old girl who had a knack for mastering anything and everything, except love. And while Alec didn't know much about the topic either, it seemed as though he was better suited for it than his little Kitty. Even though he was terrified of his feelings for her, even though he always seemed to be nervous around her, and even though he had _no _idea what he was doing half of the time, she needed him to be strong. She needed him to be the confident one, the one to hold her and the one to calm her when she over-thought everything. And so he was. He would be anything she needed him to be. And sometimes she needed him to be a love-gushing puss. So he was.

"Where is she anyway?" Vanessa asked after Bain had calmed down enough for normal conversation to start up once again.

"In her-" Alec had started to answer before realizing something disturbing. He couldn't feel the pull of her- the pull of his mate. Quickly, he focused on his other senses. He couldn't hear her heartbeat coming from the window, couldn't catch her scent.

"Demetri." He called across the courtyard. The older vampire looked up from one of his fallen friends- currently suffering agony after presumably annoying Jane-at the shocked and concerned face of another friend. Only one thing could make someone that worried.

Demetri closed his eyes and cleared his mind, searching through all of the mental signatures in the area. Katherine. He was looking for Katherine. Strong, but flexible. A soft pink hue with a gray outline- childish wonder on the inside while being engulfed and protected by knowledge and stability. There she was. He got her.  
However, he found someone else. Someone he would never allow himself to forget the signature of.

His eyes shot open and he bolted to his nearest master. Caius.

"Stefan is near."

Conversation stopped. Three others froze while Athenadora's and Caius's eyes focused on him.

"Vladamir?" Athenadora asked.

"Not with him."

This time, Caius asked the question. "Why did you notice him?"

"He is close to Katherine. Disturbingly so."

Caius's eyes blazed and Athenadora took over. "Take Jane, Felix and Alec. Your first priority is Katherine's safety, understood? If he gets away, he gets away. Just make sure Katherine is safe."

Demetri nodded once and turned. Jane, Felix and Alec were all at attention and ready to go.

* * *

She had sought shelter in an old hunting cabin when a new snowfall began. He had waited for an hour or two after nightfall before he began to make his move, just to be sure no one would be coming after her and interrupting his escape.

He and his brother Vladamir had heard rumors of new gift amounts the Volturi ranks. They didn't know what it was, but knowing the Volturi, it was bound to be great. And so they separated: Vladamir to Italy and he to the rumored location of their winter ball. It was his location where they had struck gold. A young human girl, reeking of them, was wandering through the surrounding forest. If she was the gifted one, they were blessed. If not, they'd simply kill her and continue looking.

Effortlessly, he leapt down from the tree he had been crouching in and made his way to the shack. However, before he could complete his first step, he fell to the snow covered ground in a fit of immeasurable torture.

Jane.

A stone firm hand clammed over his mouth before any screams of agony could escape.

From above himself, the tracker's crimson eyes- looking particularly psychotic at the moment- bore into his own.

"Shhhh." The Volturi guard member mocked the Romanian, "You'll wake Katherine."

Behind him, Felix- the strong one- gripped his arms. Slowly, he felt Jane ease on her gift, just before the pain was replaced with another. The vice grip of the strongest vampire started to tighten steadily, forcing Stefan's arms the gradually and painfully crumble under the pressure. All while deranged red eyes stared down at him.

Inside the shack, Katherine slept curled up in the corner, her hands and feet tucked in- in an effort to use her own body heat to warm herself, no doubt. Progressively, Alec's deep black mist crept towards her. He didn't want what was happening outside to wake her. When she was engulfed, Alec shed his suit jacket and wrapped around her, trying to give her delicate human body a better chance against the elements.

Gingerly, he scooped her up his arms- careful to position in a way such that her muscles wouldn't strain, seeing as she wouldn't be able to recognize the pain and do it herself- and made his way outside.

A fire was roaring.

~8~

Ashley looked out the window of the room she, Bolton, Bain, Vanessa and Carry had occupied while waiting for their favorite twins to return.

"I smell dead vampire." She observed simply.

Silence.

"I love you, Ashley." Bain replied.

* * *

"He is dead?"

"Yes."

"Vlad's gonna be pissed."

"Shut up, Bolton." Vanessa spat, though all member's all the Volturi ignored him. Well, almost all.

"No, he is right," Aro recognized, "Vladamir will most certainly seek to avenge his fallen brother."

"But haven't they both been trying to do that for, like, over a thousand years?" Ashley asked.

"Yes, but now he has even more reason to go all out," Jane explained, "Before he had someone, now he has no one. Now, he is completely alone with absolutely nothing left to loose."

"I have a question," Carry stated, "Why were they even left alive in the first place? You guys were their conquering power and it was your right _as_ a conquering power to kill all those associated with the power of which you conquered. So why didn't you?"

"It was not necessary." Marcus told her simply, "Vladamir and Stefan posed no threat to us. They were really nothing more than a minor nuisance. They were just annoying, really."

"Then why kill them now?"

"Because sometimes people get _too_ annoying." Caius snapped at her, the underlying threat obvious. Carry sunk into her seat.

"Oh, we got a pissy little pussy cat." Vanessa mocked. Caius blazed and was about to pounce when his wife pushed him down and shook her head slightly. Jane looked at her and her brother's friend in irritation.

"This is why you guys aren't allowed to visit us in Volterra."

"Why? Because the old geezers can't handle a couple of teenagers?"

"Yes." The "old geezers" all growled.

Before Vanessa could retaliate, Alec- who had been sitting on Katherine's bed silently while stroking the hair of his comatose love- cut in.

"Could we all either stop talking or leave the room so that I could release Katherine and she could possible start sleeping like a normal human being?"

Taking the hint, everyone left. Everyone, that is, except-

"Vanessa."

"Alec." She answered teasingly, although very well aware that her former "Benefits" partner was in no mood to be teased.

"What are you still doing here?"

"Waiting for you to release her." She said simply, nodding towards the body that was surrounded by black mist, "I want to see what my replacement looks like."

In an instant, his hand was around her throat.

"You will _not _speak of that around her, understood?" He growled, burgundy eyes swirling with rage, contempt and shame. When he noticed the fear coming from her own eyes, Alec released her, though still towering over her and staring into her soul with his disturbingly death-like death glare.

"Does she not know?"

His steady gaze of hatred answered her question.

She sighed. "Okay, one: I can't believe you haven't discussed it with her yet. Two: I can't believe you think she doesn't know by now. I saw her in the window, Alec. She was watching us, me in particular. Trust me, the idea is already in her head."

As Vanessa spoke, she watched as his anger with her was becoming more and more overtaken by shame. Wait, that means...

"Oh my God, it _is _ in her head! That's why you've been acting weird for the past while, isn't it? I've heard that mates feel some kind of supernatural attachment with each other, is that true? Is that how you know she's upset with you? Are you sure it's about us? How-"

Before she could ask anymore questions, Alec put a hand over her mouth.

"Yes," he growled lowly, "Yes, mates do have a strong connection. Yes, that's how I knew she was upset with me- because I couldn't feel her connection anymore. And yes, I know it's because of us."

He removed his hand slowly and she began questioning him once more.

"But how do you know? I thought she was asleep when you found her."

"Jane." He told her, "She overheard Aro having a conversation about it when Marcus noticed her ties break. Apparently we were rather blatant with our previous physical affections with each other. Especially to a self-conscious teenage girl."

Vanessa was at a loss. This shit was heavy. She didn't do heavy. She wasn't good at handling the emotional stuff. Her friend was hurting, but she had no idea what to say or do to make it better. So she did what she knew. She cracked a joke.

"Oops." She smiled with mock innocence and a shoulder shrug. The contempt in Alec's eyes returned.

"Yes," he snarled, venomous sarcasm lacing his words, "Oops."

Okay, not a time for jokes. Shit.

"Alec," she started again, reaching out to touch his shoulder as she had seen people do as a comfort mechanism. He snatched her wrist before she could make contact.

"Do. Not. Touch me." He growled.

_That's it, Drama Queen, no more miss "nice girl"._

"Do _not_ blame this on me, Alec Volturi." She hissed, shoving him with all of her might until his ass was on the floor, "This is _not_ my fault. I'm not the one guilty of a lie of omission. I'm not the one with an emotionally distraught mate. I _am,_ however, the one trying to help you. So sit down, shut up and listen.

"She is your _mate._ That doesn't go away, she won't leave you. I don't care if you don't feel this "pull" thing, it'll come back. If you want them to come back faster, let me talk to her. Let me explain everything to her and explain to her the fact that I pose _no _threat to her happiness. But do _not _growl at me, do not _blame _me for something that you have an equal part in and _stop _acting like such a _bitch_."

In a flash, she was in front him, a fistful of his brown hair knotted between her fingers as she used it to pull at his scalp to make sure he was listening. "When she wakes up, you introduce her to us, understood? She will get to know us all and will more-than-likely be more comfortable with the idea of what _we _were if she has three different testimonials to the fact that it no longer matters."

After releasing his hair, Vanessa stood up straight. "Now, I want to see her."

Taking the hint, Alec started revoking his hold over her. Rather slowly, so as not to overwhelm her brain with the return of her senses and force her awake. When the mist was clear, Vanessa's scrutinizing eye ran over the sleeping human meticulously.

"She's cute," The vampire finally said, "You did good."

* * *

About an hour later, Katherine gently roused from her sleep. Once peaceful and serene, the moment full cognizance hit her, fear overtook her. This isn't wear she fell asleep, this wasn't the shack. What happened? Where was she? How's she get here? Before she had the chance to think through her questions, a hand rested on her shoulder. She jumped out her skin and nearly fell off of the bed.

"Good morning." A voice laughed. She knew that laugh- it was Alec. Oh sweet Jesus, she was safe. However, before she could breathe a sigh of relief, she remembered something. She was mad at him, the jerk. Fuck being safe, she was hurt. Fuck him.

She glared at him and slid off of the bed, walking to the other end of the room she now remembered. Alec was one step behind her.

"Come on." He ushered gently, wrapping his hand around her own and lightly pulling her towards the door, "I want you to meet some people."

_...oh. _Mentally capacity paused. That...wasn't what she expected. So he was going to introduce her to his friends. Uh...cool...

Mindlessly, she allowed herself to be lead through the hallways of the Finnish fortress- passing by old tapestries and suits of armor. Whoever the interior designer was for the place really went along with the old castle concept.

Three halls and a staircase later, Katherine found herself in an elegantly decorated lounge room with three strangers and her boyfriend. She recognized the strangers- the maybe vegetarian, the maybe hybrid and the definite slut.

"Hi." The orange-eyed boy said, "I'm Bain and I have a quirk."

"_A _quirk?" The hybrid asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Shut up."

Katherine smiled.

"And what's your quirk, Bain?" She asked as Alec sat her and himself down on a red velvet fainting couch.

"All blood is the same to me." He told her simply, "It all smells and tastes the same, human _and_ animal. I've never smelt someone or something and thought 'Must drink them'. Like, Bolton told me you smell really good. Well, to me, you just smell like blood. And since I've had my fill during the party, I have no desire to drink from you."

Katherine's smile widened at the thought of being safe around this vampire. "That's a good quirk, I like that quirk." She told him. He chuckled.

"I'm Carry," the non-slut introduced, "I'm a hybrid. I was born thirty years ago, so I'm the youngest member of this little group."

"Thirteen," Katherine said, pointing her thumbs at herself, "Sorry to take your title, darling."

Carry giggled lightly and Bain responded. "She'll always be the hybrid."

"You'll always be the freak." She antagonized.

"Aro thinks I'm the next evolutionary step," Bain told her from his high horse, "I'm better than everyone else."

"Of course Aro told you that, he's not Caius. He was trying to make you feel better. Don't worry, though, Bain. The world needs freaks. There wouldn't be a circus if there weren't any freaks."

While the two bickered back and forth, Katherine took a deep breath and prepared herself for the next introduction.

Slowly, she turned. Sitting on the arm of an otherwise unoccupied chair was every deepest fear Katherine had ever had. The fear of being abandoned, the fear of being unworthy, the fear of being inferior, of being a waste, of being out done, of being forgotten. The fear of being nothing.

Sitting on the arm of the chair was a beautiful girl. Perfectly pale skin, full and red lips, soft yet mature facial features and a body to die for. While Katherine was always one to find women with bodies like J Lo and Marylin more attractive- being one of them herself- there was a gender set perfect. Small waist, perky tits, dainty shoulders and lean legs were it. Katherine had strong shoulders and would always be in a medium sized shirt just because of the way her skeleton was structure. But this girl, this girl in front of her, was perfect. And she had probably slept with Alec.

Dear God, if Alec had fucked this, why would her want Katherine? Katherine wouldn't even want Katherine if she could have _that_.

Tears stung her eyes as her mind was bombarded with feelings of inadequacy. Ugly. She was ugly. She was hideous. Disgusting.

"Katherine?"

She'll never be good enough. Nothing she does will ever make her good enough.

"Katherine?"

Ugly. Ugly. Disgusting. Hideous. Ugly.

"Katherine!"

Nothing. Nothing. Unwanted, unneeded. _Nobody wants you. They pity you. They all pity. No one really wants to be around you. Who would? You're kidding yourself thinking he wants you. He was lying to you. Playing you. You're a fool. You fell for it. You fell for his trick._

"Crazy lady." A feminine voice said. Carry's. "Calm yourself."

Katherine snapped out of her daze and quickly became aware of a few things. One: Carry's eyes were a really pretty blue. Two: everyone was staring at her. Three: There was a lot of pain in her arms. Suspiciously emanating from some new scratch marks. Wonder how those got there. Four: She was still ugly. Probably more-so now. And five: the pain in her arms was being soothed away by something cold.

Alec, from behind her, had grasped onto her arms where the claw marks had started swelling. He was her living cold compress. Why?

"Have you ever been to therapy?" Alec, his voice stern and cold, whispered in her ear. She nodded.

"If you don't cut this kind of behavior out, you're going back. Understood?"

She froze. Oh God. She hated therapy. The therapist she had was freaking.

'I feel depressed.'  
'And how do you feel about that?'  
'...depressed.'

Is that from a movie? Maybe. Which makes it even more sad. Damn therapist.

"Alec," Carry scolded, "Don't be mad at the crazy person for being crazy. It's not her fault."

Katherine gave the hybrid with pretty blue eyes a look. Crazy?

"What?" Carry asked, obviously deciphering the look, "Rocking back and forth scratching at yourself? That's classic crazy, honey."

"Okay, yeah," Katherine agreed, "but how would you react if you found out the guy you've fallen for slept with someone like _that?_" She asked, looking towards the one in question.

"How would you feel knowing that the hands that touched you so gently and with so much care- the hands that caressed you softly with the point of memorizing every part of body- did the same to her? That the lips that kissed you- kissed you in places you've never dreamed of being kissed- did the same to her?" The more she thought about it, the more she began to struggle in Alec's grasp. She didn't want him touching her. No, he shouldn't be touching trash like her. "That the one that loved you- that held you and touched you and spoke to you so freely- did the same to her?

"I'll tell you how you'd feel," Katherine hissed, tears streaming down her face as her struggle became halfhearted tugs every now and then, "You'd feel like shit. Worthless, disgusting shit. You'd feel like you'd been used, like so many of your friends had. That you were the butt of a cruel joke. That you let yourself break through your barriers and fall from the tightrope with the promise of being caught, only to fall to your death. You'd feel like trash. Because compared to her, you are."

The room was in silence. No one knew what to say. Carry just stared at the young girl in awe, Alec was frozen stiff, and Bain was watching Vanessa.

Vanessa had be silent the entire time, not once moving since Katherine lay eyes on her. She looked as though she were going to be sick, if at all possible. Her eyes were swimming in guilt. Wow. Vanessa actually understood the seriousness of something. There really _is_ a first time for everything.

Suddenly, the silence was broken.

"No one...speaks of my mate in such ways," Alec growled into Katherine's ear, his teeth grazing her skin dangerously, "Not even herself. Is that understood, Katherine?"

When she didn't respond, he tightened his grip on her arms. She flinched.

"Is that...understood?" He growled once more.

"Yes."

"Good. Vanessa," he hailed the other girl, who carefully walked over to them. Once the two girls were in front of each other, Alec started the introductions.

"Katherine," he began in a disturbingly calm voice, "This is my friend, Vanessa. Vanessa, this is my mate, Katherine."

Vanessa stuck out her hand, playing along with the terrifying situation. "Pleasure to meet you, Katherine."

Katherine shook her hand with no qualms. "Likewise, Vanessa."

When the greeting were done, Vanessa quickly made her way back to her seat. Carry had decided to hide behind Bain when crazy Alec came out to play.

Just before crazy Alec went away for the day, he had one more thing to say to Katherine.

"I will not apologize for my actions, nor will I regret them." He told her simply, speaking softly into her ear, "I would much rather you hate me than hate yourself. You are too wonderful to hate yourself and I'll never understand how you do it. And if I have to frighten you to get you to stop, then so be it. I do not take joy in making you fear me, Kitty, but I will do it time and time again until you get it through your thick skull: I love you, Katherine Jensen. I love you more than you are willing to accept. And I'll love you even more when you stop being so insecure."

The three others watched on as the little human girl worked to process the information.

"You..."

"Yes," Alec confirmed, "I love you."

"...but..."

"No," he growled, "There is not 'but', there is no asterisk, there is no condition. I. Love. You."

"You..."

"Say it."

"Love..."

"Say it..."

Slowly, she turned around, looking him dead in the eye with confusion painted on her face. "You love me?"

He smirked, "Yes, Katherine. I love you."

"Bu-"

"Uh uh." He scolded lightly.

"So you..."

"That's right." He smiled.

"Sincerely?"

"With all of my twelve hundred year old soul."

Katherine sat back, overwhelmed with the information. He...he loved her. But...how? How could he...her...but he does. He wasn't lying, she would have been able to tell. No, he was sincere. He loves her. She is important to him. He loves her.

A childish grin crossed her face as she gleamed up at him.

"You love me." She mocked.

Alec chuckled, "Yes, yes I do."

"You love me, you love me, you love me, you love me," She taunted childishly as she pushed him down onto the couch, crawling over top of him. "You love me."

"I love you." Alec smiled, stealing a kiss from her smiling lips.

"Gag me with a spoon!" Bain shouted is distaste at the display.

"Gag you with a spoon?" Vanessa fumed, staring at him in rage, "Gag you with my fist!" She pounced.

Carry screeched and darted out of the way just as Vanessa landed atop Bain.

Alec and Katherine watched on in amusement for a few moments before she turned her attention back to him.

"You love me." She smiled.

He smiled back. "I love you."

_**A/N2: I have the preview for my next story O'Dark Thirty out. It's Alec/OC and a lot more balanced-with romance and supernatural both playing a major role- so check it out if you haven't already (Stargazer *winky face*) and let me know what you think. I think this story has maybe two or three more chapters left, then I'll start O'Dark Thirty.**_


	18. Time of Dying

_**A/N: Next chapter will be the last, yo. So preps yourselves lol Today was my last day for the internship because I start school again next Tuesday. Yikes.**_

_**Larcian: **You can run, but you can't hide. (*.*) I'm watching you.**  
**_

_**Stargazer: **Yup! I killed him. Killed him dead :) I have nothing against The Romanians, just needed something to happen and he was there. Poor baby.**  
**_

_**Marla: **I'm sure he'll be glad to hear you no longer to kill him lol Especially in such an interesting way lol**  
**_

_**MarielleMonster: **Coolio :)**  
**_

_**Chapter Song: Time of Dying by Three Days Grace  
**_

_**~I  
~II  
~III  
**_

_"I will not die, I'll wait here for you, in my time of dying."**  
**_

_**~IV  
~V  
~VI  
**_

"This will be a problem. I am just unsure of when the problem will present itself."

"Which is a problem in and of itself." Caius noted.

The brothers and their wives congregated in a sound proof room below the ground level of the castle. Above them, the festivities continued. With them, a much more somber topic was being discussed.

"The situation would be easier if we changed her." Athenadora said.

"But is she ready to be changed?" Sulpicia challenged, "I hate newborns as they be. A newborn with a gift like Katherine's own? Spare me the hell, please."

"But she has shown great advancement with her telekensis," Aro pointed out, "Everywhere from the strength to restrain Felix- if only for a short time- to the precision and delicacy to adjust Corin's attire without the latter becoming aware of it."

"She did warn us of underestimating her," Marcus reminded everyone, "Perhaps we didn't heed it with all of the seriousness we could have."

"But she's a thirteen year old girl. Nothing more than a mere child," Sulpicia continued to challenge, "I'm amazed she knows left from right, much less her own limitations."

"Sulpicia," Caius started, "Stop being so irrational. That's what I do."

Athenadora snorted and Sulpicia cracked a smile at the joke.

Aro took the quick moment of calm to be the devil's advocate against his wife. His very scary wife.

"My love," He started, "She may be a child in our eyes, but we've only known the girl for a matter of months. We have to take into consideration that she's known herself for thirteen years and just might have a better understanding of herself than we have of her."

The red head sighed and slumped in her seat. "I just think that it's dangerous."

"So is Vladimir." Athenadora said.

"We will test her." Marcus told everyone, "We will have her demonstrate to us her amount of control. If it is decided that she will be able to handle the struggles of newborn life along with her gift, then we will change her immediately."

Aro perked up almost instantly. "Why yes! Perfect plan, Brother! Is this something we all may agree upon?"

He took the silence as their confirmations.

"Excellent! Now, the question remains: how will we test her?"

* * *

"He said he loved you!?"

"Mhmm." Katherine hummed happily into the phone.

"Oh my GOD!"

"Yup." She smiled proudly.

"Dude!"

"I know." She beamed as she dazedly fixed her makeup in the train bathroom.

"Oh my God!"

"You said that already."

"I don't care! Becky! Becky!" Andy called out- assumedly down the hall to Becky's room. "He said 'I love you'!"

Katherine heard a muffled, "Who did?"

"Alec!"

"To you?!"

"No, you idiot! To Katherine!"

"Oh my God!"

"I know right!"

"Dude!"

Katherine chuckled and rolled her eyes as her friends restarted the teenage-girl loop. In a matter of seconds, Becky's voice was clear in her ear.

"He told you he loved you?"

"Yup."

"Oh my God!"

"Okay, we are _not_ starting this again." Katherine laughed as she zipped up her makeup and leaned back in the tiny space that is a train's bathroom.

"Oh fuck you, we so are! Oh my God! Was he serious?"

Katherine bit her lip to hide the smile that was breaking out, "I don't know…I think so."

Becky squealed and Andy grabbed the phone back, "But what if he wasn't?"

Her smile fell and Katherine felt the suffocating darkness of inadequacy slowly engulf her. "I'd rather not think about it, please. Ignorance is bliss, after all."

"Okay, okay, my bad," Andy apologized, "So when did he say it? Why, where, what was going on? Tell me _everything_."

"It's a long story, Andy," Katherine told her with a happily exhausted sigh, "I'll tell you about it when we get back tomorrow.

"Tomorrow?" Becky was back on.

"Some shit happened and now someone may or may not want me dead."

"Wait…I thought someo-thing- already wanted you dead."

Katherine sighed, "Yeah, well, now I got two bounties on my head. They want to be back in Volterra for home field advantage and what not, so I'm on a train."

"Not alone, I hope." Becky said, "Not with two different death certificates floating around."

Katherine laughed "No, no, Jane and Alec are with me, it's all good."

"Thank _God,_" she replied with an exaggerated breath, "I was gonna say…the mafia can't be that stupid. Letting their newest collector's item run around without a leash."

Katherine paused, thoroughly confused by the…strange analogy. "Well…alright…I'm going to go now. Buh-bye…"

"Bye!" Both girls shouted before Katherine was met with dial tone. She closed out of the call and exited the bathroom. Dodging passengers and sliding along the walls of the narrow hallways, Katherine eventually made it to the dining car where Jane and Alec were waiting.

Or…where Jane was waiting.

"Where's the male one?" Katherine asked as she slid into the booth. Jane cocked an eyebrow.

"'The male one? He tells you he loves you and the best pet name you can come up with is 'the male one'?"

It was Katherine's turn to give "The look". "Do you want lovie-dovie? Because I can do lovie-dovie that will make you wanna hurl."

Before Jane could answer, 'The male one' returned.

"Pumpky-pooh!" Katherine acknowledged with a wide smile and a small giggle. "Where have you _been?_ I've missed you _sooo_ much, Honey Pie!"

Jane was cringing and Alec took a step back, starring at the human girl as though she'd lost her mind.

"Uh…I just finished talking to Aro. You know how to knit, right?"

Katherine nodded enthusiastically, obnoxiously batting her eye lashes and pouting her pink lips. Alec continued to stare at her, inching back and sliding pass a tortured Jane into the empty window seat. Jane always preferred the aisle seats.

Katherine's hand shot out to his, grabbing it where it rested on the table. Alec flinched, but didn't pull away. He just stared at their conjoined hands in worry.

"Well…they want to see you….knit something. With your mind. To see how…okay, what the hell?" Alec asked, yanking his hand out from under Katherine's as she continued to star at him with googly eyes.

To this, Katherine laughed and Jane groaned, sinking into her seat.

Alec looked suspiciously between the two girls. Neither of them seemed to be answering his unspoken question, so he continued on with what he was saying beforehand.

"Anyway…they want to see how well you've trained your gift, so they want you to knit something in front of them."

Katherine nodded thoughtfully, "Yeah, okay. Should be simple enough. As long as it's not a mitten. Those things kill me."

Gradually, the group of three fell into a comfortable silence. The roaring of the train barreling through Europe drown out any obligation to speak, leaving each to their own devices. Jane entertained herself with a puzzle box she'd gotten at the station- she had solved it many times over already, but it kept her hands busy while her mind wondered. Alec stared out the window, taking in the fast-paced scenery in ways no human could comprehend, while he considered how the hell he could have possibly fallen for someone as…strange as Katherine. She was so complicated- something he did not like. The simpler the things were, the better. So why did he get tangled up with someone as emotionally damaged as her? He doubted things would ever be as simple as they used to be with her in his life.

Quickly, he stole a glance at the person in question. Katherine had fallen asleep- lulled into the dream world by the consistent hum of the train- and was cuddling her stuffed cat Snowy as she curled up in her seat. The soft glow of the night lights highlighted the curves of her face made her brown locks seem like caramel flowing around her. She shifted in her seat and nibbled nervously on her lower lip. Something must have happened in her dream. He wondered what it was. What had worried her so much? The pissed of vampire coming after her to avenge his fallen brother? The pissed of werewolf that may or may not exist, but would definitely want her head for having a part in killing its mate? Or maybe she had a bad hair day. He didn't know. Girls were weird like that.

She cowered again, hugging her childhood toy closer to her. Alec immediately regretted sitting next to his sister. Katherine needed him and he couldn't get to her. He could hear her heart beat accelerate and could smell the sweet magnolia scent of her dampen. Shortly after, the salty scent of tears hit him. Alec began debating how he could get to her without disturbing Jane when the frightened girl whimpered. Without a thought, he moved like lightening over the table that separated them and sat in the empty aisle seat next to his love. He pulled the girl into his chest and held her there, petting her curls and kissing her forehead while whispering sweet nothings to her sleeping mind. Slowly, her heart rate returned to normal and her sleep turned peaceful, her tense body relaxing against his. Alec smiled and looked up at his sister. The elder twin scoffed and rolled her eyes, but there was a hint of smile on her usually stone face.

* * *

"We have to lie to the police?"

Rebecca and Andy stared at Felix as though he'd gone mad.

"But not just the police," Andy added to her friend's shocked statement, "The US military as well. This is their kid, they're going to get involved."

"If you don't think you can do it-"

"Oh no, we can do it." Andy interrupted. Becky looked at her as though she were mad. "We won't be happy about it, but we can do it."

"No we can't!" Rebecca shouted.

"Yes, we can." Andy told her sternly. "We'd have to do it anyway after she goes missing. At least this way we're on offense. We're in control."

With a sigh, Becky accepted her fate and let Andy continue on with the giant in their living room.

"Now," the giant started, "We have a few wkorking ideas on the story-"

"Eh eh eh," Andy interrupted again, "If you want us to help, we're doing things my way."

Becky groaned and Felix let out an amused chuckle.

"Alright," he started with a smile, "what's your idea?"

"Okay, so you know how back in the 80s in Australia…"

* * *

The round orb of clear white floated up high, an aura of reflected light brightening the area around it. Katherine looked up through her dorm window. She was scared. She didn't know why. All that was happening tonight was her _maybe_ becoming a vampire. Now, granted, that should be terrifying enough, but not when you've had three months to accept the idea. She had friends in the Volturi, a boyfriend who loved her and would be there with her through everything, and nothing to worry about. So why was she so fidgety?

With a shaky breath and a sudden bout of chills running down her spine, Katherine picked up her knitting basket and exited her room.

Silently, she glided down the stairs and out the back door, successfully avoiding her fellow inhabitants of the dorm house. She slid the glass door shut and quickly made her way around the house, ducking into the shadows every time she passed a window. If they saw her, they'd ask where she was going. Actually, they'd ask when she'd gotten back, then where she was going. She was really rather proud of herself- in and out in 10 minutes without a single pair of eyes catching her. Vampires beware: this kid has skills.

Walking down the snow-covered coble-stone drive, she tucked her hands into the large sleeves of her red caplet, hooking her fingers together as her basket bounced against her torso. Snow flitted around her as she was joined by a vampiric escort. She looked to her left. Another red cloak, meaning it was a lower level guard. Almost instantly she felt her body relax. She was with someone, so she was safe.

The pair walked down the road and towards the walls of the city in a silence that neither cared to break. The slush on the road sloshed and crunched under Katherine's boots, soaking them. She could feel any wetness on her feet, but she was certain it was there. Her poor little tootsies were gonna be frozen solid.

A howl tore through her thoughts. It was like an approaching storm. Far enough off so you may have time to find safety, but way too close for comfort. Apparently her escort thought so as well, for he lifted her from her feet and bolted to Volturi HQ.

~8~

"Absolutely wonderful!" Aro exclaimed happily, a large grin spreading across his face, as he examined the newly finished scarf. He had seen the needles floating, and seen the scarf being finished in midair. He, his brothers, and the wives had all seen it. He studied them all and had seen it in their faces. It was decided.

Caius nodded to Felix, who smiled and darted out of the room.

Alec traced a hand down a worn-out Katherine's arm, bringing her attention to him. He smiled at her softly and gently lead her out of the room.

"Who will do it?" Caius asked.

"Alec will _want_ to." Athenadora mentioned, "I've heard that changing someone can be rather intimate. It will either have to be him or someone he trusts. Anything less and we risk pissing off one of the most dangerous vampires in existence."

"I wouldn't feel comfortable having Alec change her," Caius said, "He's never had to taste without feeding before. It may be too much."

"But he's already engaged in other…intimate behavior with her," Sulpicia pointed out, "And she's still alive."

"But there was no blood." Marcus mentioned.

"But there has been," Aro said, recalling a previous incident, "In October, when he brought her here in her sleep. She had been cutting herself. The entire room he found her in smelt like her blood, yet his main concern was her safety."

The other four were quiet while they considered their possibilities. None wanted to take something so special from Alec, especially with Aro and Sulpicia as evidence to how much closer it brings mates. And yet, the risk was great. Alec HAD never bitten with the intent to change- only feed. Yes, with 12 centuries under his belt, he had incredible control, but would it be enough?

"He will get to change her," Caius announced with finality, "But Jane will be present and at the ready to bring him down if things get out of hand."

~8~

"Alec," Jane said softly as she popped her head into his room, "The Masters want to see us."

"I'll be right there," He called out from his bed. At the sound of her retreating footsteps, he turned back to Katherine. "Now remember, I'll have you under for the entire change. It will be as though you're sleeping, just for a really long time, " he laughed, "The problem most people have with my gift, aside from not knowing what's going on, is not knowing when it will end- if ever. You don't have to worry. I will pull you out as soon as the change is complete, okay? Everything will be fine."

Katherine nodded her head silently, accepting his words as fact.

"Are you sure you're okay?" he asked her. She nodded.

"Then why is your heart racing?"

She shrugged. Alec smiled softly and kissed her cheek.

"Everything will be fine." He told her once again, "I'll be back soon." With that, he was gone.

Katherine sat on the bed, dazed. So, it was happening. Like…now. Wow. Okay…wow. She was going to…wow….that's something that doesn't happen every day…

She heard the faint sound of a wolf howl. Was it the wolf that was coming for her? Maybe. But she had been hearing the howls all night. Yeah, there were wolves in the area, but they usually weren't so vocal. Maybe it really was the werewolf coming for her.

_I hope Alec gets back soon._

Right on cue, the bedroom door opened.

Katherine crawled to the end of the bed to see who was joining her.

"Um….hi?"

The stranger smiled wickedly.

~8~

Demetri snapped to attention. Someone was here.

On the other side of room-with their Masters and her brother in between them- Jane looked at him in concern, raising a questioning eyebrow.

_"You okay?" _she mouthed, but he didn't respond. He was too focused on who was in his home. In his mind, he went through every signature and their locations. No one near the doors, no one near _them_, no one near the Hall of Records.

Katherine.

His mind went to finding Katherine. Alec's room. Vladimir. They were leaving.

His mind went blank.

Jane followed after him when her snarling mate tore out of the room, with Alec and the Masters close behind. They followed him to Alec's room, where he sprinted to the shattered window and made an attempt to leap out. Caius stopped him.

Jane looked around in confusion. What happened and where the hell was Katherine? Demetri was thrashing against Caius' iron grip while Sulpicia tried to calm him. Aro, Marcus and Athenadora were in a quick and hushed discussion and Alec…Alec was…frozen. Solid.

It was then that she caught the scent. Romanian. Vladimir.

Well shit.

* * *

_Ow._

That was the first thought in her mind. Her throat was sore and on fire. Slowly, she opened her eyes, and black dots spotted the spinning ground. She brought a hand to her throat and flinched in pain. Yup, that was bruised. Motherfucker strangled her.

"Welcome back."

Her bloodshot, brown eyes looked towards the voice. He was an ancient. Logic says he was Vladimir.

"Evening Vlady." She spat, her lips pulled back into a snarl. He chuckled and walked closer to her, reaching out to touch her face. She dodged it with a hiss. This time, he laughed out right.

"Hissing now? Well, one would assume that's what happens after spending so much time around such feral creatures as the Volturi. One would adopt particular…habits. Though truly, it is rather becoming on you. Wildness." He smiled seductively, "My late wife was fierce, herself."

He moved closer to her, the creepy smile still in place, and she snapped.

Energy burst from her and flung him backwards, sending him barreling through the trees.

As Katherine was calming down, he was standing up, snarling at her with the feralness he looked down upon. He began stalking towards her when a streak of black tackled him down. She couldn't be sure exactly who it was, but her savoir seemed to be Felix. Thank God for Felix.

Just as she, herself, began to stand, she heard a growl.

Right. Behind her.

She stiffened, and focused. The sound, the smell, the feeling of an intimidating size….the moon…

The dog bit at her, but she dropped and arm-rolled out of the way. She rose to all fours and crawled away from the creature, before dropping back down on her stomach to avoid a sweeping claw. She rolled to her back to examine the werewolf and was stricken with fear.

It was huge, and angry, and possibly had rabies. Great.

The dog rose to its hind legs, brought its claws close together, and began to fall towards her. A thought came to her. Two transparent hands rose from the ground, wrapping their fingers around the wrists of the beast and holding it up. The creature growl and barked, trying to tear away from the invisible force. Katherine crawled out from under it and backed against a tree. She was weak. Using her gift so much, it was wearing her out.

Soon enough, the dog broke free of the hands. She didn't want to stop it, her head hurt too much. It was throbbing, the pressure on her eyes was ridiculous, and she was just tired. She really didn't want to do anything. It just sounded unpleasant.

However, getting mauled by a werewolf sounded worse.

Katherine sighed in preparation for what was about to happen.

A metal stake and chain appeared, hammered into the ground. The chain wrapped around the werewolf's neck and held it back.

Her brain was about to explode.

Each time her head throb, the chain would weaken. It wasn't going to last long. She knew this, and she tried to move, but she couldn't. She was too weak. She couldn't force her body to move, regardless of how hard she tried.

Her vision blurred. The chain weakened.

So she was probably going to die now. Hm. Alright.

Amidst the blur of the trees and snow, she saw a pair of red eyes. Enraged, crazy red eyes. Vladimir. What happened to Felix?

The dog took notice.

That's right, werewolves and vampires are like Montagues and Capulets.

A plan began to form in her foggy head.

Vladimir was closer now. And closer. And closer.

His teeth tore into her throat. She released the dog.


	19. Little Red Riding Hood

_**A/N: And here...the final chapter. I may make another story full of deleted scenes from this one that would further explain some stuff, like why the wolf only went after Katherine and not Andy or Becky, why Andy ended up living back in the dorm house or if she told her parents about the rape, Katherine's thoughts as she was in the hunting shed in Finland, just things that I couldn't really fit into the main story but would still help out with it. I don't know, I guess I'll see how I feel. Anyway, school is in two days. Wow. And I will be starting O'Dark Thirty soon, just give me time to transition from OC to OC, alright?**_

_**Larcian: **__Your reviews confuse me lol But it's all good, cuz they make me giggle :) Though the music video thing was a little random...ah well!_

_**angel2u: **__Yeah, I didn't go into detail about that because it kind of scared me lol it may be a deleted scene if I end up doing that, though..._

_**Stargazer: **__"Life is like a box of chocolates...sometimes you get a really good chocolate with that gross toothpastey stuff in the middle and sometimes you get gross chocolate with killer caramel as the filling. And sometimes you get crappy chocolate and crappy filling. Damn." I may have paraphrased that last part there...yeah...lol if there is anything you can take from that, it's that boxes of chocolate suck and Katherine probably isn't a fan of them, cuz she'd get the worst of the worst lol_

_**Chapter Song: Lil Red Riding Hood by Amanda Seyfried.**_

_**~I  
~II  
~III**_

_"Hey there lil' red riding hood, you sure are looking good. You're everything, a big bad wolf could want."_

_**~IV  
~V  
~VI**_

"Three days in and the search for Katherine Jensen continues. If you recall, she was going on a walk with her friends, who shall remain nameless, when the girls heard a wolf howling in the forest. Curiosity got the best of the girls and they went to investigate. Only two came back. While wolf attacks are very uncommon in the area, they're not impossible, according to officials. Everyone should remain on high alert, avoid going out past sundown, and stay in populated areas. Officials have also come out to say that they may never know what happened to Katherine when the wolves supposedly got a hold of her, as they may never find the remains. Reporting for News channel 11, I'm Abelie Moretti."

Jessica clicked off the television. Most of the girls had gone to bed by now, only Becky, Andy and Flora remained up with her. Her eyes looked to the girls.

Flora's face was stone. She showed no emotion., just sat and stared at the now blank television screen. Her eyes- stone and cold- were watering just slightly. As one tear broke free and trailed down her face, she bolted from her seat and ran upstairs.

That was a normal reaction. Sadness, anger, confusion. She didn't expect the girls to accept it, who would?

Rebecca and Alexandria, that's who.

They had been frantic three nights ago, bursting through the back door with their outrageous story. Jessica was ultimately confused, seeing how Katherine was supposed to be in Finland and not wandering the woods of Volterra, but the bloody and frantic girls convinced her. And the city. And the cops. And the United States National Guard. All of whom were searching for the wolves that supposedly killed a 13 year old girl.

But now, now that everything seemed to be set in motion, they were calmer. At first, she thought that maybe it was an inability to process what had happened, maybe they mentally drown out the events in hopes to protect themselves. However, that idea fell apart when- late at night- she heard the girls giggling. Girls don't giggle after watching their best friend die.

So…the girls were lying, Katherine was gone, and she hadn't seen the Volturi boy anywhere- not with the police or out looking for Katherine. Add all of those observations together, and an assumption was made.

Katherine Jensen was now Katherine Volturi.

* * *

Alec looked up from his easel and directed his eyes to where his Katherine lie. It had been five days since she was bitten and the change seemed to be wrapping up. She lay completely still, of course, covered by his black mist, but her heart gave it away. While the beats had been erratic since the change started, there was always a certain rhythm the muscle seemed to pick up in the final stages.

Someone else seemed to get the message, too. He could smell fresh blood be prepared.

The rhythm began to pick up as Alec started putting his painting supplies away. Soon, she would be his forever.

He began to retract the mist, starting from her feet and gingerly working his way up. The tips of her bare fingernails were exposed just as her heart took its last beat. Jane walked into the room, holding a tray with two large glasses of just-drained blood on it. She placed it on the night stand, offered her brother a loving smile, a quickly made her exit.

The mist was gone. All that was left was for his Katherine to awaken on her own. Seconds felt like hours as he watched her, far enough away so that if she woke in frenzy as a decent number of newborns did he'd be safe. It killed him, though. He wanted to be next to her, but he logically couldn't. Fucking logic.

A twitch of her pale hand caught his eye. Her nail tips scratched at the bedspread under them. In a split second, her hand froze. Alec's eyes shot to her face. Vibrant, vivid, ruby red eyes stared at the ceiling. Then at him. He was still.

Her red eyes studied him, just as her brown ones used to. Her smooth, white face was expressionless as her new mind worked to process all it could. He could only imagine what was going on in her head. Did she know where she was, who she was with? Did she know why she was here or recall what happened a few nights ago? Was she the same Katherine, human or vampire? Suddenly, amidst his wonderings, her eyes left him. Currently, they were fixated on the two glasses of blood. She looked back at him with a quirked eyebrow. He nodded curtly.

Quicker than he could see- damn newborns- she was on the edge of the bed downing the first glass. In her rush, blood escaped and trickled down her chin, then her slender neck, and finally, down in her shirt, pass where his eyes could see.

She had finished the first glass and – gently, very gently- set in back on the tray. A pink tongue peeked out and ran along bow-like lips, sensually licking the blood from them. Alec quickly grew uncomfortable.

It was dangerous, he knew it was. But then, every aspect of their physical relationship at this point had been dangerous. The only difference now was that the danger was for him, not her. She was fine, so he'd be fine.

But, he had had twelve hundred years to make sure she'd be fine. She could hardly set down a glass without breaking it. Then again, he wasn't exactly glass…

His musing were cut short when his mate brought a slim finger to her lips, wetting it with trace amounts of venom before dipping it down her shirt, tracing along the curve of her breast to collect the spilled blood, before popping it back between her lips.

_Worth it._

As she was sucking the blood from her finger, her eyes met his with a questioning glance. The little minx didn't even know what she was doing. Silly newborn.

Slowly, so as not to startle her, Alec approached. She watched him with curious eyes, her finger forgotten between her pursed lips. He smiled down at her, running a hand along her soft skin. When his delicate touch reached her mouth, he hooked a finger through her own and pulled it out, trailing it down one side of her neck and collecting more blood. Hooded eyes watching him, he brought the red-tipped digit to his mouth.

Black over-took Katherine's eyes as a lust other than that for blood washed over her. Burgundy eyes on black, Alec slowly removed her cold finger from his mouth and began lowering himself. In an instant, his face was in her chest and she was gasping for unnecessary air as his skilled tongue licked the remaining trail of blood from her cleavage. He followed the trail to her neck and lapped it up. As he passed the spot where the _leech's _teeth had sunk into her, he thought of how grateful he were that such scars were taken care of during the change. If not, he'd probably figure out a way to bring the fuck back from hell just to kill him again. He deserved more than what he got. At least in Alec's mind, that is. Even Jane had thought he'd gone a little crazy with the over-kill, but it would never be enough for Alec. He should have been the one to change his mate, not some pathetic has-been.

As Alec's mind wandered, his hands and lips did the same, reacquainting themselves with a body that was so familiar, yet so different. He kissed down her neck to that little spot where neck and shoulders met, right above her strong collar bone. That used to be sweet spot of her's, one she'd love him to tease. He wondered if it still was…

Just as he began to suck, Katherine gasped in delight and pulled his standing hips closer to her seated ones. Yup, definitely a sweet spot. The more he teased it, the more she squirmed, struggling to bring their bodies together anyway she could. Finally, Alec- either having enough of the games himself or having taken pity on her- lifted the newborn and pushed her further onto the bed before crawling over her.

* * *

Rebecca and Andy sat on the roof of their dorm house- hot chocolates in gloved hands- and looked up at the now crescent shaped moon. Neither girl spoke a word, both too wrapped in their own thoughts to notice the silence.

Tomorrow was Katherine's "funeral". While they knew better, it would be a lie to say it didn't affect them.

Both girls knew their best friend was safe and sound and- above all- happy with her new life, even if they hadn't seen her since she left for Finland all those days ago. It didn't take a genius to know she was better suited for such a strange world as the one she was now in. Naturally gifted with incredible and unmatched analytical skills, an innate lean towards the darker and more mysterious things of the world and a dash of crazy gave her more than she needed for their world, but all she needed for her own.

Katherine wasn't meant for their world, but a world beyond it.

And now…now their friend was where she belonged.

The two girls stared up at the lunar crescent and raised their cardboard cups in a toast.

"Ah-ooo." They called softly, following it with quiet giggles.

* * *

They were all dressed in black, each one looking positively distraught. Except Alexa, God bless her innocent soul. She was holding hands with William, who was staring intently at the melting snow.

Her parents, they were both teary eyed. Lies. Her life didn't affect them greatly and neither would her death. It's just the way it works. Becky and Andy were standing with each other, both acting as William and looking down. Adrien was rocking back and forth, probably emotionally incapable of handling such a heavy situation. How had the entire "wolf" story affected her? Poor Adrien.

Kyle stood tall and strong, his face stone and his posture solid. A military boy through-and-through, weakness was not something he was used to. Weaknesses were to be hidden, so he was hiding his. But his blue eyes gave him up. He was hurt. Adam wasn't present. Odd enough, but to each their own.

Katherine was brought out of her musings by Alec hooking his arm with her's. The couple stood atop a hill in the cemetery, watching over the funeral of Katherine Jensen.

"Magnolia lilies." Alec observed of the floral arrangements. Among the normal lilies and orchids were little purple gems. God only knows where they got them at this time of year. William was probably the one who did it, sweet boy.

"My favorite." She told him simply. He chuckled.

"I know." He said vaguely.

She looked up at him, smiling in cynical amusement at his taunting before returning her attention to the ceremony.

What immediately got her attention , this time, was the sweet boy. His eyes, hard and unwavering, were directly on her own, boring into her soul. He had seen her. Fuck.

He tugged lightly on Alexa's hand and motioned for the three year old to look up at the hill. Her blue eyes connected with Katherine's red ones and a smile split across her face. What Katherine saw when this happened shocked her still.

Little Alexa was donning a set of plastic vampire teeth.

Alec chuckled and Katherine looked at William in astonishment. The older cousin was now smirking, his brown eyes teasing as he shot her a wink before turning his and Alexa's attention back to the ceremony.

Alec, still chuckling to himself, led Katherine the path that would take them from the graveyard.

"How did he…?" She murmured to herself, "The brilliant bastard…"

Little Alexa watched her favorite cousin leave, the red hooded girl walking arm-in-arm down a paved path with a boy in a dark brown suit that was just a few shades lighter than his hair. The brown haired boy and the red-hooded girl slowly disappeared, walking out of the cemetery and into the happy-ending left for Alexa to imagine. Maybe they could live in a castle and have a lot of fun with the other people there. Maybe they could be royals and help rule over all the land. Or maybe they'll have a pony and...

_**A/N2: And that's that. I may add some kind of filler chapter after this cuz I can't stand ending at 19. 17 is gold, 18 is okay, but 19 tweaks me. It's gotta be 20 now, so I'll probably just post something about O'Dark Thirty. **_

_**Anyway, it's been fun and thank you all so much for all the support and I hope my fellow students (which I think most, if not all, of you are) have a wonderful school year!**_


	20. O Dark Thirty promotion

Boom! Filler! Because I can't fucking stand having it end at fucking 19, it makes my fucking skin fucking crawl cuz of the fucking number cuz its so fucking close to fucking 20 and its like "just be 20, fucktard!" and now it is! Wooh!

I feel better now...yeah...

Anyway, a new Alec/OC story is in the works. I have the preview posted already, it's called **O'Dark Thirty** and it focuses on a very special young girl named Agatha (Aggie) and her mentor Laviana. It doubles as a Marcus/OC as well with him and Laviana because Marcus needs more love! Check it out please and let me know what you think by leaving a review. Even if it's 'Yaaaay! I can't wait until you actually start this story :D'. Seriously, I just need something to push me, and reviews do that. So please, check it out if you haven't already.

Okay, that's enough filler. This story is officially complete.


End file.
